


Royally Screwed

by southernmiss



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Royalty, And possibly Queen, Angst, Arkadia, Artist Clarke Griffin, Badass Lexa, Bartender Clarke, Clarke Griffin & Raven Reyes are Best Friends, Clarke gets the chance for a fairytale romance, Clexa Endgame, Country stuck in tradition, Don't get it twisted, Dynasty - Freeform, Engineer Raven, F/F, Fairytale romance, Finn must marry to be King, Fluff, Harper is a schmooze, King Verald, King and Queen, Lady Alexandria, Lady Clarke, Lexa is a soon to be General, Lexa is gay, Niylah is a threat, Octavia's a new friend, Original Characters - Freeform, Prince Finn, Queen Katherine, Raven speaks her mind, Royals, Sort Of, Sponsor Wells, Unlikely Suitor, Zoe is quiet, finn is sweet, lords and ladies, suitors
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-05
Updated: 2018-01-15
Packaged: 2019-02-28 20:23:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 24,907
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13279206
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/southernmiss/pseuds/southernmiss
Summary: Clarke is living her life as an artist/bartender when she meets Finn, but things aren't as they seem.  Finn is a Prince of a small country called Arkadia, and he is set to take the Crown when his father steps down.  There's only one problem: He has to be married.  A pool of five Lady suitors is chomping at the bits to become the next Queen of Arkadia.  Clarke isn't sure about the whole process, but she is willing to get to know Finn a little better.  She never expects to fall for another person.  Especially when that other person is one of the other suitors vying for the Prince's hand in marriage.**Lexa is gay, people. They are not fighting over a boy. Be patient and read the story.  If not, then I will not be upset if you decide to pass on the story.**





	1. Is This Even Real?

**Author's Note:**

> What's up, guys? I know that some of you are still waiting patiently for me to finish 'This Love is Criminal', and I promise to do that, but I had to get this down once the idea popped into my head. I hope that you guys like it. I am by no means an expert on monarchies and dynasties, so bare with me if there are some inconsistencies. Love you all! Enjoy!

“Oh my - you cannot be serious right now!” Clarke huffs loudly as she starts to sweep up yet another broken glass at the bar. Her night just hasn’t been going the way that she would like for it to. For a Tuesday night, it’s been fairly busy at the hole-in-a-wall bar that she works in. ‘The Dirty Glass’. Who the hell names their bar ‘The Dirty Glass”? John Murphy. That’s who. Clarke’s not even sure why she took the job in the first place. She’s never been able to stand John. Not since high school. She reckons that it all comes down to the money. She’s an artist for crying out loud. She just hasn’t made it ‘big’ and she’s starting to struggle and rethink her decision about going to med school like her mother. Although she doesn’t make a great amount of money, if she smiles and wears low-cut shirts she does get pretty good tips from a lot of drunken perverts.

“What are you over there huffing about, Griffin?” A voice calls to her as someone emerges from the kitchen. “I swear. I feel like you hate your job.” John Murphy smirks and crosses his arms in front of him.

Clarke rolls her eyes and continues to sweep up the glassy mess. “Cut the crap, Murphy.” She almost growls. Her foul mood is really starting to shine. “I’m not in the mood.”

John lets out a sarcastic chuckle, unfolding his arms and walking towards her. “This is my bar, Griffin.” He’s closer to her now. Trying to intimidate her, but he knows Clarke. He knows that that will never work. She doesn’t get intimidated by anything. At least that he’s ever seen. “Talk to me like that again and you’re out of here.”

“Okay, Murphy.” Clarke mocks, turning her back to him and tossing the trash into a can underneath the bar. “You know that I’m the only person that would be caught dead working here. You’ve pissed off the rest of your friends.” She says before adding. “Not that we’re friends.”

He stares at her for a few more seconds before relenting. He knows that she’s right. He’s screwed everyone over and he struggles finding people to work for him. “Whatever.” He says, turning his back and heading back into the kitchen. The bell rings, signaling that a customer is coming in and Clarke groans. It’s five minutes until closing. Great. This is all she needed. “Take care of that table, would ya?” Murphy says, before finally disappearing into the back.

“You’ve got to be kidding me.” Clarke groans, before stowing away the broom and turning around to look for the customer that had just come in. She throws on her best fake smile and she absolutely wants to scream when she sees that four or five guys have filled up the corner booth. She walks up to the table and scans her eyes around its inhabitants. Clarke isn’t blind. Everyone of the young men at the booth are gorgeous. She tries not to let her blush show on her pale skin when one of the taller one winks at her. “How’s it going, guys?” She asks, like she always does. She never really wants to know the answer so she continues on . “What can I get for you all tonight?”

The tallest man, the one who winked at her, clears his throat and looks directly at her. “Well, beautiful.” He smirks and a couple of the men roll their eyes. That much does not go unnoticed by Clarke. Must be typical cocky behavior for him. His accent is another thing that does not go unnoticed by the blonde. Where is he from? It’s definitely European. It’s pretty common, though, to come across people with accents. This is New York City, by the way. “How about a round of beer to start us off?”

“Bottle or dr -” 

“Draft, sweetheart.” He grins and winks again. Clarke nods her head and turns on her heels to head towards the bar. “The most expensive thing you’ve got!” He yells across the room. “We’re celebrating!” Clarke doesn’t even turn around to acknowledge him. She doesn’t need their tips that bad.

She’s almost finished pulling the drinks when she hears a throat being cleared behind her. She rolls her eyes because she figures that it’s the tall cocky guy again, but when she turns she sees that it is not. It’s the shorter man that had been sitting beside him. His smile is warm and kind and he runs his fingers through his long brown hair almost nervously. “I’m terribly sorry about Bellamy’s behavior.” He throws a thumb over his shoulder pointing back towards the booth and smiles again, softly. He has the accent too, and Clarke definitely does not swoon over it. “I can’t take him anywhere.” The man jokes, and Clarke actually grins.

“It’s okay.” She responds. “I’m used to dealing with guys like that here.”

“Ahh, well I am sorry that you have to deal with such idiocy on a daily basis, Miss -” He smiles again and Clarke realizes that he’s asking for her name.

“Oh - I’m sorry. I should have introduced myself at the table.” She grins. “I’m Clarke.”

The man grins and runs his hand through his hair again. It’s so shiny and sleek. He looks like he could be in a damn Pantene commercial. “Clarke.” He repeats her, almost as if he were trying the name out on his tongue. “That’s a very interesting name for a very beautiful girl.”

Clarke chuckles, but blushes nonetheless. “Do I need to watch out for you and this Bellamy guy now?” She jokes.

“Not at all.” He smiles. “Although, I would really love to see him get shut down. I think that I’m due for a good laugh. I’m Finn, by the way.” He adds on at the end for good measure. 

“It’s very nice to meet you, Finn.” Clarke starts to walk back to the table with the tray, when Finn offers to take it for her. This is her job, but she’s not going to refuse such a nice gesture, especially after the night that she’s had. “Thank you.” She follows him back to the table, where they are definitely being way too loud. It doesn’t really matter, though. The bar is technically closed and the rest of the place is like a ghost town.

“Whoa!” She hears Bellamy exclaim. “Finn, I didn’t know that you were hurting for money.” He jokes.

Finn rolls his eyes and looks to Clarke apologetically. “Not at all. Just helping Clarke out with the drinks.”

“Clarke, eh?” Bellamy asks, looking at her like she’s a piece of meat. 

“Enough, Blake.” Another one of the men says, punching his friend in the arm playfully. “Don’t scare the poor woman away. He looks to Clarke and smiles. “Hi, Clarke. I’m Wells.”

“Nice to meet you, Wells.” She grins and nods her head towards Bellamy. “And you don’t have to worry about me. I deal with arrogant assholes all of the time.” The whole table erupts into laughter and Bellamy’s face is priceless. She laughs along with the other men and when Finn sits down, he asks her to join them and she does. 

Clarke learns all of their names. Of course there is Finn, Bellamy, and Wells. The other two are Monty and Jasper. She’s gathered that they are an item, although she’s not too sure if they’re ‘out’. She just has a good gaydar. She grins at how cute the pair are. She and the five men sit and drink for almost two hours before Murphy goes and leaves Clarke to lock up the bar. When she walks outside, she notices that Finn is there waiting for her. “You’re not here to kidnap me are you?” Clarke jokes and Finn smiles warmly at her.

“Of course not. I was just curious as to what your plans for the rest of the evening are.”

“Oh - umm, well… it’s pretty late. I was just going to head back to my apartment.” She responds. 

Finn looks as if he wants to ask her something and when he finally does, it’s not what she was expecting at all. “Mind showing a group of four crazy drunk men and a devilishly handsome one the sights?”

Clarke laughs at him and then raises her eyebrows. “The sights? Where are you guys from exactly?”

“Arkadia.” He states as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world. Clarke’s face is surely telling him that she’s drawing a blank, because he continues. “It’s a very small country in Europe.”

“Oh - well, umm - what brings five Arkadians to The Big Apple?”

She notices his face fall at the question and looks down at his feet for a moment before looking back at her. “Oh - a bachelor party.”

“You guys came all of this way for a bachelor party? Who’s getting married?” The second question made Finn almost physically flinch.

“I’ve never been to New York.” He responds quietly. “Always wanted to check it out. I thought that I might as well do it before I’m tied down.”

It takes a moment for Clarke’s brain to process it, but then it finally clicks. “Wait. You’re getting married?” He nods his head solemnly. “And what would your future wife think about you flirting with an American bartender all night?” At this point, she was very agitated. The nerve of some guys. This is why she would much rather date a woman.

Finn’s eyes fly open wide at the mention of his flirting. He hadn’t thought that he had made it that obvious. He didn’t know how to explain the situation to Clarke. It was difficult and confusing to anyone that didn’t live in a kingdom like the one he is from. “I - I’m not really engaged.” He says, and Clarke looks more confused now than ever. “Not yet.” He tacks on at the end.

“Not yet?” She huffs. “So, you’re just pre-gaming?”

“Pre-gaming?”

“Look, Finn.” Clarke starts, pulling her purse up tighter around her shoulder. “It was very nice to meet you and your band of merrymen, but it’s late and I’m tired. Goodnight.” She says before turning and walking away, leaving a speechless Finn behind under the light of the streetlamp. 

 

//

 

Clarke hadn’t been home for more than three minutes when she hears a knock on the door. She huffs and walks to check into the peephole. It’s most definitely not the person that she expected to see. She opens the door to a smiling, friendly face. “Wells?” She asks, still confused as to why this man that she had only met a few hours ago, is knocking on her door. “What are you doing here? Did you follow me?”

He nods. He stands straight with his hands folded behind his back. It remind Clarke of some sort of military stance and she wonders if he serves in Arkadia. “Clarke. I’m so extremely sorry for barging in here like this, but I really need to talk to you.”

“What on Earth about, Wells? I just met you.”

“Please, let me come in to explain. I’m just asking for five minutes of your time, and then you can kick me out and send me on my way.” Clarke reckons that it must be at least somewhat important if this man followed her here to speak with her. That or he’s here to kill her. She decides to chance it. She’s always been a curious woman. Clarke opens the door wider, gesturing for the man to enter.

She motions for him to sit at the dining table. “Tea?” She asks, nicely. 

“No, thank you.” He grins warmly. “And thank you again for giving me a chance to explain some stuff.”

“Don’t thank me yet.” She responds, sitting down across from him. “I may still kick your ass out.” She is only somewhat joking. Wells doesn’t take it as a joke at all. He folds his hands up on top of the table. Probably a gesture to make Clarke feel a little more comfortable.

 

“As you know, all of the guys and myself are not from around here.” Clarke nods and he continues. “We are from a small country in Europe called Arkadia. Not many people have heard of us.” He almost looks like he wants to chuckle, but then gathers his wits again. “Finn informed me that he told you that we were here for his bachelor party.”

“He told me.” Clarke says a little too harshly. Still pissed off that the man would flirt with her all night if he had a fiance waiting for him in another country. “None of his story made any sense whatsoever.”

“That’s what I’m here to explain.” Wells retorts. “Finn is a prince.” He searches over Clarke’s face seriously and he can tell that she’s still a little confused. “He’s our prince. The prince of Arkadia. The Crelann dynasty has ruled over Arkadia for the last two centuries and -”

“Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait…” Clarke stops him abruptly. “He’s a prince?”

“Yes, Miss.”

“He’s a fucking prince?” This time she says it more to herself than anything. Clarke leans back in her chair, not at all bothered by her own manners. There’s a few moments of silence. Wells allows the information to sink in deeper. Clarke’s mind is racing. “You mentioned the - Cr - Crelann dynasty? What’s that?”

“The royal family.” Wells responds, as if it’s the most well known fact in the world. “Finnigan James Crelann III. His father, King Verald, is ready to pass the torch. So to say.”

“Pass the torch?”

“Yes. Finn is to be the King of Arkadia.” Wells continues. “There’s only one stipulation. He has to be married.”

“Okay.” Clarke huffs out. “I knew that there were still monarchies in the world, but I didn’t know that someone had to be married just to rule. That’s ridiculous.”

“That’s tradition.” Wells replies. “Anyway, that brings me to why I’m really here.” The blonde across from him raises an eyebrow and sits up straighter in her chair. She mirrors the man in front of her and places her folded hands on the table. She is sure that they look almost comical. Like they’re in some sort of business meeting making a deal. “There’s to be a pool of suitors.”

“A pool of suitors?”

“Well, yes. Finn will have his choice of Noble women to court.” Wells watches Clarke’s face silently as she processes everything that he is telling her. She’s still not sure why he’s telling her this. None of this really matters nor pertains to her. He must understand what’s going on in her head because he continues without her having said anything. “It’s actually a tradition for a future king, whom does not already have a lady in his life, to spend several months getting to know a few Noble Ladies of the Court.” Wells smiles a sad smile before continuing. “Don’t get me wrong, there are a lot of beautiful, smart, and kind women in the Court but Finn is not really attracted to them in that way. We’ve known them all for most of our lives. If there were feelings there, don’t you think that he’d already have them?”

“Uh - I don’t know. Maybe.” Clarke shrugs, still confused as to this whole conversation. “What does this have to do with me?”

“I saw the way he looked at you. The way he acted with you.” Wells starts in. “I would like to invite you to Arkadia to join in and become one of his possible suitors.” If Clarke would have been drinking any sort of drink, she’s sure that she would have spit out at that moment. Her eyes are wide and she looks at Wells as if he had grown a second head. 

“What!?” She responds, almost a little too loudly. “What the - me? Isn’t this thing for Noble women? You know, girls with a lot more pull and money to their name? Not some bartender from the States.”

“You’re right. The future king is traditionally betrothed to a Lady of the Court. However, Finn is not typical. As soon as he is in power, he plans to bring our small country into the twenty-first century. He’s a great man and my best friend. He deserves to be happy.”

“And you’re asking me to come to Arkadia?”

“Yes.”

“For how long?”

“The courting process usually lasts around three months, but if you were to win the affections of the Prince then you would of course be a permanent resident of our country. You would be our Queen.”

Oh shit. Clarke thinks to herself. Of course. How could she not have thought of that? She can’t be a queen. That’s quite possibly the most comical thing that she’s ever heard. No. This whole process is ridiculous. She doesn’t realize it, but she’s laughing out loud. Wells looks at her with worried, puzzled eyes and she starts to realize that she might be insulting him in some way. “Well, thank you for your invitation, Wells, but I could never be a queen.” She thinks for a second before continuing. “Finn and I know absolutely nothing about each other other than our names. It would not be smart of me to leave and follow some sort of dream that he could be my ‘Prince Charming’. No pun intended.”

“But that’s what the entire process is for.” Wells says almost immediately. “For Finn to get to know a few different women and have a chance to possibly fall in love with one of them.”

“Yeah? And what if he doesn’t fall in love with anyone?”

“Doesn’t matter.” Wells answers matter-of-factly. He stands from his chair and dips his hands into his pant pockets. Clarke stands to mirror him. “Finn has to be married to become the King. If he doesn’t find love, he still has to choose someone to rule by his side.”

Clarke is silent for a moment. She’s trying to take everything in still. There’s so much information flying around in her head. So many questions. “That’s kind of sad.” She says and Wells raises an eyebrow. “That he could possibly not have the chance at love.”

“That’s a sacrifice that Finn is willing to make for his country. His people will always come first.” Wells smiles softly. “I’m sure that that is something that you can understand, Clarke.”

She nods. Because she does. Not to that level, but she would do anything for her family and friends. Finn must truly be a great man, and that’s when she finds herself saying, “I don’t know how expensive airfare and lodging in Arkadia is, but I can assure you that I don’t have that type of money.”

Wells shakes his head ‘no’. “Everything will be taken care of by my family. Since, we Jahas do not have a female that could ever be considered a suitor for Finn, we will take care of everything. A sort of sponsor, if you will.” 

“What? No, that’s -”

“No arguing, Miss Griffin.” He smiles. “Lodging will be taken care of by the royal family. Each suitor will have her own room inside the castle. Each and every meal will be served there, as well.”

“Wow.” Clarke exhales. She says it quietly enough that Wells almost doesn’t hear her. “This is so crazy. Like, how does shit like this happen? Especially to me. I’m nothing special. Just an artist from Brooklyn.”

“I have a feeling that there’s a lot more to you, Clarke, than what meets the eye.”

She smiles softly at him. “I have absolutely nothing to wear. The fanciest dress I own is a maxi dress I bought at Target like two years ago.” She tries to make it come off as a joke, but she is most definitely serious about that. Wells chuckles.

“Wardrobe is also not a problem. Money is no object. Just make sure that you have all travel documents necessary. You will not be staying at the castle the entire time. There will be different events scattered throughout the country. We will be on the move quite a bit.”

Wells grabs Clarke’s hand to bring it up to his mouth. He places a soft kiss there and chuckles again when he sees that Clarke is still lost in her own thoughts. He knows that this is a lot to wrap her head around. Especially for someone not familiar with their country’s traditions. “Finn, Bellamy, Monty, and Jasper all leave out in the morning. I will be staying a couple of extra days for business. You can fly back to Arkadia with me on Saturday evening.” He walks to the kitchen where there is a notepad and a pen lying on the counter and he jots down his telephone number. Ripping the paper away from the pad and smiling at Clarke while he says, “Call me for any more questions, and I’ll call you tomorrow and let you know our time of departure for Saturday.”

Clarke nods, still in a daze, as Wells walks to the door. He opens it and smiles before turning away, but before he can shut the door Clarke yells, “Can I bring a friend?”

 

//

 

“Oh, you’ve got to be shitting me.” Raven marvels as she and Clarke make their way to the private jet that is in front of them. Both have their bags in hand, and Raven is practically skipping towards their mode of transportation. It didn’t take much for Clarke to convince Raven to come with her to Arkadia. Although, it did take a lot more for her to convince Raven that this situation was even legit. She smiles to herself as she remembers her friend’s face when she told her the opportunity she had to find love with a prince. She knows that her face probably looked exactly the same. Luckily, Raven is her own boss. She designs different components for some sort of engineering program for NASA. She runs her own department and does most of her work from her computer. Raven had assured Clarke that as long as she had a Wi-Fi hook up, she would stay with her for as long as she wanted her there. “This is one fancy plane.”

“You can say that again.” Clarke wows, as they step into the small jet. 

“This is one fancy plane.” Raven jokes and Clarke rolls her eyes, but laughs nonetheless. 

An older looking man approaches them, and politely takes their luggage from their hands. He leaves them, and that’s when Clarke sees Wells’ familiar face. She smiles at him when he sees her. “Clarke.” He smiles back and walks up to she and Raven. “I’m glad that you’ve decided to do this. I think that it will be a great experience.” He looks to Raven and extends his hand. “For the both of you. I’m Wells Jaha, Miss -”

“Raven Reyes.” The fiery Latina firmly grabs his hand and shakes it, although Wells had planned to kiss the the top of her hand. He looked to Clarke with a smirk on her face and she can only roll her eyes. She had already prepared Wells over the phone about her best friend’s eccentric behavior. “Nice plane you got here. I’m working on my FAA license. You got your EASA?”

Wells looks a little confused as the brunette looks him up and down waiting for his answer. He finally decides that the woman is asking him if he has a license to fly the plane she is clearly obsessed over. He smiles. “Actually, no. I’m no pilot. Just the owner.” He points to the older man that she and Clarke had seen just a moment ago. “That’s the pilot. Mr. Campbell. He’s worked for my father for years.”

“Ahh…” Raven hums, quickly losing interest now. She smiles at Wells and Clarke and moves to sit down in the white recliner towards the front of the plane. 

“Thank you again, Wells, for everything you’re doing. I still can’t believe that this is happening.” Clarke grins. She’s excited to see Finn again, but nervous all the same. She had such a great time with him at the bar a few nights ago, but at the time she hadn’t known that he was a prince. Not that that changes her feelings or attraction towards him, but she’s just hoping that she doesn’t make a fool of herself.

“No.” Wells smiles warmly. “Thank you. I’m just hoping that things can work out for you and my best friend. I hope that you two hit it off and maybe you can make each other really happy.” He gestures at the two seats beside Raven, allowing Clarke to step in front of him to take a seat. 

“How long is this flight?” Raven asks.

“Around sixteen hours, I believe.” Wells replies, and Clarke and Raven look to each other with comically wide eyes. Wells laughs at them. “Plenty of time to get to know the two of you.” Raven groans and this time, Clarke joins Wells in the laughing. 

 

//

 

As their plane begins to descend, Clarke looks out the window beside her to take in Arkadia from an aerial view. It’s absolutely breathtaking. She sees green everywhere and as they approach a large estate looking area ahead of them, bold colors from trees and flowers come into view. She is really thankful that she thought to bring her painting supplies because she thinks that she will definitely have to paint some of the gorgeous scenery that she sees. She knows that it will be even better up close. “It’s so beautiful.” She says softly, still looking out the window. Wells smiles.

“I think so too.” He leans over, closer to Clarke to also look out the window. He uses his index finger to point at the grounds that Clarke had just been looking at in awe. “That’s it.” He grins at her. “That’s Crelann Castle.”

“Wow. It’s amazing, and a lot bigger than I imagined it would be.”

“Our country may be small, Clarke Griffin, but I assure you that our style is not.” He replies and nudges her shoulder with his own causing a smile to form on her face. 

The plane lands and Clarke and Raven follow Wells off of the plane and over to a very expensive looking car, Clarke notices. She can already see the excitement in her best friend’s eyes as they approach the vehicle. “Holy shit.” Raven breathes out, causing Wells to laugh. He already knew that the car would get some sort of reaction from the brunette. “Is that a 1965 Rolls-Royce Silv -”

“Silver Cloud III Coupe.” Wells nods. He loves his car and he loves when other people get excited about it too. “It’s been in my family for years. My father gave it to me a few years ago.”

“You actually get to drive this?” Raven asks.

Wells chuckles. “Yes. Of course. And I hope the two of you do not mind sitting a little closely together. I hadn’t planned on Raven’s presence.” The car is made to be a two-seater, but Raven was going to make her ass fit on the same seat with Clarke’s ass because she was definitely riding in this car.

After the three of them pile in, and Mr. Campbell loads their luggage into the trunk, Wells begins to drive towards Crelann Castle. “So, wait.” Raven speaks. “I thought someone like you would have your own driver.”

“Raven…” Clarke warns, but Raven rolls her eyes and Wells laughs. 

“Most other Nobles do have drivers.” Wells replies. “I’m not most other Nobles, though.” He smirks.

“So, you drive wherever you want?”

“I try.” He laughs. “Usually for only short periods of time. Like this. Other times, my father does assign a driver to me. Especially for all of the events that are sure to come this season.” A few moment of silence pass by the three of them, and Clarke takes in the scenery outside as it zooms by them. It’s so much more beautiful and colorful up close. Her fingers twitch, wanting to pick up her brushes and paint the beauty that she sees. After another minute or so, Clarke brings her attention back to the people that she’s in the car with. 

“Wells, what is your title?”

“My father, Thelonius, is a Duke. Since I am his only son and heir, I am a Marquess. In other countries, it’s typically called an Earl, a Viscount, or a Baron.”

“So, people call you Marquess Wells?” Raven asks, and it’s so serious that Wells and Clarke burst into a fit of laughter. Wells thinks that this girl really is something else.

“I think that they probably address him as a Lord, Raven.” Clarke gets out after their laughter has died down. She pats her friend on the back and Raven glares playfully at her.

Wells nods his head. “That they do. People address me as Lord Jaha or Lord Wells. My father is Duke Jaha.”

“Do you like when people call you Lord Jaha?” Clarke asks, seriously this time. She couldn’t imagine being called something like that all of the time. She’s no better than anyone else, and she would never want anyone to talk up to her like that. She gets the feeling that Wells is the kind of guy that feels the same way. He’s completely exceeded what she expected a Noble person to be. 

“No.” He replies almost immediately. “I hate it, actually. But this is the way that things are in our country and others that still have a monarchy and classes. I believe that that is one thing that Finn plans on changing once he’s King. At least tweaking it some.”

“Sounds like a good idea to me.” Clarke says with a smile and Wells returns it. It’s only a few minutes later when they are pulling up to the castle, and to say that it takes Clarke’s breath away is an understatement. The building itself is gorgeous, but the landscape definitely elevates everything else. Clarke exits the car, and she knows that she looks like an idiot with her mouth ajar and her head tilted back to look at the tall building, but she doesn’t care. “This is amazing, Wells.” Clarke smiles. “I’ve seen a painting done of the Chateau de Chenonceau in France, and this reminds me of that a lot.”

Wells nods. “I love that place. It’s gorgeous, but I can assure you that Crelann Castle’s gardens outdo the Chateau’s by a thousand.”

“That’s good to hear.” Clarke grins, and goes to the back of the vehicle to grab her bag. 

“Don’t worry with your luggage, ladies.” Wells says, walking towards a stairway that leads up the the main door of the building. “Someone will be out to get the bags and deliver them to your rooms soon.” The two women follow Wells to the grand doors. The doors to this place are incredible, and just one more item on Clarke’s list to sketch while she’s here. The doors are made of a very dark wood that looks incredibly old and she figures that it is. In the foreground, intricate ironwork details the door, enhancing the beauty of the it even more. Clarke can only think that if this is the way the entrance looks, what does the inside look like.

Two guards, dressed in red uniforms with golden buttons with pearl inlays, stand on either side of the door. Their military style hats almost cover their eyes, and each of them have one hand on a ceremonial sword on their hip. Clarke immediately recognizes the larger one. “Bellamy?” She asks with a little surprise in her voice. The man’s eyes widen when he realizes who this blonde woman is and he immediately loosens up his stance a bit. Bellamy looks to Wells, questioning what is going on.

“Clarke is here to try and win our friend’s heart, Bell,” Wells answers Bellamy’s unspoken question. 

“Wait. Are you serious?” Bellamy looks between the two of them and then glances over at Raven before looking back to Wells. “Does Finn know about this? Is this even legal? She’s not of Noble blood.”

“The Prince does not know about Lady Griffin being here. It’s not illegal, but it’s not exactly going to be easy to convince the King and Queen and the other Nobles either.”

Clarke and Raven exchange a worried look before Bellamy looks to the blonde. “Well, Princess, if it doesn’t work out with the Prince come find me.” He winks and is immediately back in his stance with a smirk plastered on his tanned face. Clarke rolls her eyes, but smile anyway.

“Follow me, ladies.” Wells motions for them to continue on as Bellamy and the other guard open the mammoth-sized doors. As the doors open, the three of them step into the castle Clarke’s mouth falls open. It’s so light and airy and she already loves the atmosphere that it sets. It makes you feel like you’ve just stepped into another time. Whites and light beiges color the walls and all of the decor that fills the foyer. Shiny marble floors sparkle as if they are cleaned hourly. Columns tower above them on each side of the foyer, that can’t be any less than a football field in width. The ceiling is so high, Clarke is sure that she could touch the stars from up there. A massive, round skylight is cut out above them, and in some ways she wishes that it were night time so that she could see those stars.The centerpiece of the room, however, is a grand staircase. It runs through the middle and then cuts away on both sides wrapping around an creating a circle above them into the next level. She can see that it continues up for at least three more levels. Gorgeous plants are decorating every other step on both ends all the way up, and she realizes that this place has to have an excellent gardener. Raven breaks Clarke out of her thoughts.

“You sure do get a lot of access to such a highly guarded fortress like this. They just let you come and go, huh?”

Wells nods. “My father runs all agricultural businesses in this country. I have always had a love for nature and I grew up learning everything from him. As I grew older, I found a sort of hobby in planting and gardening. Being friends with Finn, the Queen noticed my skills and asked me to lead the royal gardening department. I’m here a lot. I actually have my own living quarters here. I don’t do a lot of the physical work, but I draw up all of the ideas for the grounds.”

“Wai - wai- wait.” Raven says with a bit of a chuckle. “There’s a royal gardening department?”

“Raven…” Clarke warns again. She’s got a feeling she’ll be doing that fairly often. 

Wells laughs once again and Clarke is thankful that he is so down to Earth and has a good sense of humor. Most people of his economical stature may not look at it as funny. “Yes, Miss Reyes. There is a royal gardening department. There are actually a lot of departments around the castle. The Royal Family has opened up several jobs for the people of the nearest town. Yet another reason that the Crelann dynasty is very much respected.”

Changing the subject completely, Clarke decides to ask what’s been on her mind since they got here. “Where’s Finn?” Wells smiles warmly at her and sighs.

“I’m sure that he’s around, but that’s something I need to talk to you about. Can we carry this conversation up to your rooms, please?” Clarke furrows her brows in confusion, but nods and follows Wells as he turns around. She starts to feel lost after only a few minutes. The hallways and staircases wind around the castle like a snake around it’s prey. It’s all very confusing and she can’t figure out which way they came from. This was definitely going to take some getting used to.

When Wells shows Raven to her room, the brunette immediately says that she is going to shower and take a nap before exploring around the castle a little more. He explained that Clarke’s room was the next one down the way on the right if she needed her. Clarke opens the door to her bedroom and is immediately speechless once again. The room is huge, to say the least. It’s bigger than her apartment back in New York. Spotless, white carpet lines the floors and they blend in almost perfectly against the white walls. The crown molding framing each wall is a work of art in itself. A lavish lavender colored area rug sits in the center of the room, adding a pop of color. To the door’s immediate left is a sitting area fit for a queen, where a small coffee table is filled with a vintage silver tea set. Clarke’s inner five-year-old squeals in delight. The centerpiece of this grand bedroom however, is a bed literally fit for a queen. Clarke’s blue eyes widen in awe of the even more luxurious feel that the bed adds to the room. The headboard is clearly an antique. It’s made from wood and with the ornate carvings of the piece, it’s a work of art all on its own. There is a column on each of the four corners of the bed that stretch all the way to the ceiling. Light lavender chiffon-like material drapes between them all, causing this bed to be one pulled straight from the blonde’s dreams.

“Wow.” Clarke whispers almost to herself and then looks to her right at her guide. “Sorry. I know that I keep saying that…” Her eyes roam back over all of the beautifully grand pieces that make up the room. “But this is just amazing.”

“Don’t apologize.” Wells smiles. “Crelann Castle is one of the most ornate and luxurious castles in Europe. People would pay thousands of dollars a night to stay in a bedroom like this one.”

“I still can’t believe that this is happening.”

“I’m just glad that you came. I could see the connection between you and Finn at the bar the other night.”

Clarke grins, remembering how adorable Finn was smiling. “He seems like a great guy. Can’t wait to get to know him, but what was it that you were going to tell me?” Clarke immediately changes the subject back to the question of where Finn was and when she would get to see him. That is why she is here after all. To get to know him.

“Well,” The man says, crossing his arms in front of his chest. “As you know, there will be a few more women vying for the Prince’s affection. Over the next few months, there will be events set all around our country. That’s a lot of traveling, but on top of that Finn will be going places in between for official business. His time is going to be spread horribly thin. Each woman will sort of have a time limit with him at each event. It’s not literally timed, but he will be pushed and pulled between a lot of people.”

Clarke groans. She hadn’t thought of any of that. Duh. The Prince is a busy guy. Of course his ‘dates’ will be timed. She wants to laugh, but she knows that Wells is serious. “Basically, I just need to make the most of our time together?”

“Basically.” He grins. “Sorry. I know that it’s not ideal.”

“Not ideal at all.” Clarke chuckles. “But it will be fine. If things don’t work out, it won’t be the end of my world. I never saw anything like this ever happening to me anyways.”

 

“Okay.” Wells says, clapping his hands together and then sticking them into his front pockets. “I’ll let you get settled for a while. You’re bags should already be inside the closet in the en suite. Take a nap, freshen up, do whatever. After while, I’ll be sending you and Raven shopping with a good friend of mine.”

“Shopping?”

“Of course. A Lady has got to have an amazing wardrobe.” He smiles. “If you don’t, the women around here will chew you up like a pack of hungry wolves. Don’t worry about the expenses. The shops that you will be going to are aware that everything will be charged to House Jaha. Get whatever you need. And Raven too.” He says before exiting the room. Clarke still cannot believe that this is her life right now. This is crazy.

 

//

 

 

A refreshingly hot shower and an hour long nap later, and Clarke is sitting on the side of her bed waiting for Wells to arrive with whatever friend he has going shopping with them. Raven is lounging on the chaise lounge in the sitting area of Clarke’s bedroom, throwing a piece of wadded up paper into the air and catching as it falls back down. The brunette lets out a loud huff after a moment and sits up. “When is Wells supposed to be -” Her question is interrupted by a knock on the door and Clarke leaves her seat to answer it. When she open the large door that exits to the hallway, she sees Wells and a woman beside him. The woman is shorter than Clarke with long black hair pulled back into a high ponytail. She wears a black pantsuit with a white button-up shirt under the blazer. A lanyard with a sort of pass hangs from her neck. Clarke smiles at them both and opens the door wider for Raven to see. 

“Clarke, Raven.” Wells greets with his usual wide smile and then gestures at the woman beside him. “This is Octavia Blake. She is the Security Chief for the Royal Family, and one of my dearest friends.”

“Hi.” Clarke smiles, immediately sticking her hand out for Octavia to shake. Clarke isn’t shy and she loves to meet new people, so meeting another person from Arkadia was exciting to her. “I’m Clarke Griffin. It’s very nice to meet you.”

“Likewise.” Octavia replies with a barely-there smile, but Clarke could tell that that was just the girl’s personality. The shorter woman grabs Clarke’s hand with her own and shook. She definitely has a strong handshake, and Clarke immediately knows that she wouldn’t want to get into a fight with this young woman. Octavia moves to face Raven, and the Latina introduces herself as well.

“Raven Reyes. Clarke’s genius best friend.” She shakes Octavia’s outstretched hand. “Security, huh? What kind of surveillance system you running here?”

Octavia smirked at bit at the girl’s questions. “That’s classified.”

“Ahh. Well, I tried.”

“You two ready to go shopping?” Octavia asks, clapping her hands together in front of her. “I’m off duty for the rest of the evening and since it is my job, I thought that I might take this time to get to know the two new residents joining us for this event season.”

Clarke grabs the knob on the door and waits for Raven to walk out before she shuts it. “Sure.” Clarke smiles. “I’m excited to see some of Arkadia for the first time.”

“Follow me.” Octavia responds, patting Wells on the back as she walks past him. “Make sure that Bellamy is stationed with the Prince as soon as he is relieved from door guard.”

“Will do.” He smiles before leaving the three girls to themselves. As they walk together, Clarke decides to fill the silence. She really would like to make another new friend here. 

“So, do you know Bellamy?” She asks, having heard Octavia tell Wells Bellamy’s assignment for the evening. 

“Unfortunately.” Octavia says jokingly, making Clarke laugh. Because Clarke knows. God. Clarke knows what a pain in the ass that Bellamy is already. 

“He hit on you all of the time, too?”

The shorter woman leading them makes a disgusted look, but continues to walk. Her stance makes her look taller than she is. The way that she carries herself makes Clarke think that Octavia has had some sort of military background. “God no. He’s my older brother.”

Clarke’s eyes widen at the revelation. “Oh. Wow. I didn’t realize. So, you’re his boss?” She asks with a hint of playfulness. 

“I am.” Octavia smiles wide as the three of them exit a back door and make their way to a car that Clarke assumes is the Security Chief’s. “Once or twice a week, I have him on door guard just to show him that he is not too good to do such a job. The rest of the time he is my lead for the Prince’s security team.”

“Well that’s pretty cool that the two of you get to work together.” Clarke says sweetly and she hears Raven make a sarcastic sound of disgust beside her, but decides to ignore it.

“Yes.” Their leader replies softly. “I suppose it is pretty cool. I want to punch him in the face sometimes, but he is my big brother.” She says, signaling for Clarke and Raven to get inside the shiny black Range Rover in front of them. “Gotta love him.” Clarke smiles once again, and follows Octavia’s lead into the vehicle.

The beginning of the ride is very quiet. Clarke and Raven are both in awe of the wonders that Arkadia’s landscape has to offer. If Raven appreciates the landscape, then you know that it’s something to see. Clarke doesn’t know how long the ride takes them, but before long she sees a small village ahead of them, and when they get closer she can see that the town is very well kept up. She can tell that it’s a very old place, but it’s gorgeous and everything in the windows of all of the shops look very expensive. She’s kind of nervous to see what kind of tab she and Raven ring up for the Jahas.

“Alright, girls.” Octavia says, putting the car into park and taking off her seat belt. As if reading Clarke’s mind, she smiles and says. “Ready to put a dent into the Duke’s bank account?” All three girls laugh and exit the car to browse through the shops lining the streets. Raven has to take a phone call for work, something about needing some instructions for some microscope that she built, so she walks a little ahead of Clarke and Octavia. “So, are you ready for all of the glamour and drama that you’re about to walk into?” The shorter woman asks as she and Clarke slip into a dress shop to browse. 

Clarke sort of hums to herself, flipping through a few gorgeous evening gowns that look like something straight out of a fairy tale. “I don’t think that I could ever be ready for something like this.” She jokes, pulling a gold dress out and eyeballing it closely. “But I’m not scared if that’s what you’re asking. It takes a lot to make me nervous.”

“Good. That’s good. Because I hate to tell you, but this is going to be hard for you.” Octavia says, assisting Clarke in holding dresses that she picks off of the racks. Clarke looks to her questioningly. “The Lords and Ladies of the court are not easy to please.” She says, answering Clarke’s unspoken question. “Neither are the King and Queen. Don’t get me wrong, the majority of the Nobles and the Royal Family are amazing, beautiful people, but there will be people wanting you out of here. Paparazzi will be at the majority of the events. It’s my job to make sure that all of you Ladies are kept safe during the process, but I can’t save you from whatever words that the journalists and yourself may say.”

Clarke nods, still confused by everything. She knows this will be tough, but she didn’t realize that she would be in the spotlight so much. Maybe she won’t gather as much attention as the other Ladies since she isn’t of Noble blood.

“And do not think that you’ll get off easier because you are not of Nobility. It’s going to be even harder for you than the others. They’ve grown up around this. Every second of their lives has had them training for things like this. They are all groomed to be a queen.”

“Great.” Clarke says under her breath. “Just great.”

 

//

 

A few hours and way too many dresses later and Clarke, Raven, and Octavia make their way back to Crelann Castle. Raven picked out two or three, but Clarke probably has a dozen or more new gowns. Octavia had informed her that she could never be seen in the same gown twice and that there will be plenty of events to wear them to. The dresses that Clarke had finally decided on were in a vast array of colors. Blues, reds, golds, greens. Really every color under the sun. Clarke was quite literally in heaven surrounded by all of the designer gowns. A single one is probably more than a month’s rent of her apartment back in New York. She really hopes that the costs weren’t too much for the Jahas to deal with. She doesn’t want to be a burden and she had spoken so much to Octavia earlier in the day. The shorter woman assured her that the Jahas are one of the wealthiest families in Arkadia, and she need not worry.

“Alright, girls.” Octavia says, breaking the three of the women out of their comfortable silence on the way to their rooms in the castle. She pauses in front of Clarke’s room. “Here you are. If you need anything, do not be afraid to ask. I live on the grounds, so I will not be too far away.”

Clarke and Raven both smile at Octavia, but before the girl can walk off Clarke asks, “Octavia, do you have any plans for the night?” Octavia raises an eyebrow and so does Clarke’s best friend from beside her. Clarke shrugs. “I just thought that you might want to hang out with us in my room for a while. Give us the low down on all things Arkadia, and possibly some insight on who my competition will be.” She tries to joke about the last part, but in all honesty she’s being dead serious.

Octavia seems to ponder for a moment before finally agreeing. “Sure.” She replies with a smile. “I’d love to.”

The three young women walk into Clarke’s enormous bedroom, all with their arms full of designer bags. They immediately get hung up in the closet off of the en suite in the room before each of the girls move to the sitting area. “I still can’t get over how much bigger your room is than mine, Griff.” Raven huffs as she sits down with a plop. 

Clarke rolls her eyes. “Raven, I saw your room. It’s still bigger than your apartment back home.”

“This is true.”

Clarke grins at her friend and then at Octavia. “So, Octavia… how did someone so young become the Security Chief for a Royal Family?” To Clarke’s surprise, Octavia kicks off her shoes and sits cross-legged on the sofa across from her. The blonde isn’t complaining at all. It’s a nice change to see the girl loosen up. Clarke assumes that Octavia can’t afford to look relaxed or vulnerable outside of the confines of the room.

“Our parents died when we were young. Bellamy and me” She clarifies, and Clarke must obviously look like she’s going to say something. Octavia immediately deflects. “Don’t worry about it.” She smiles sadly. “It was a long time ago. Anyway, we were placed into an orphanage. It was only a year or so before Bellamy turned sixteen, and he did everything he could to keep us from getting adopted by a family. He didn’t trust anyone. Especially around me. One day, a week before his birthday, the Royal Family was scheduled to come and visit the orphanage. Surprisingly, Bellamy acted like the guy I knew he could be and he ended up really impressing the King with his work ethic. When the King found out that Bellamy was almost of age, he offered him a night guard job at the castle, and told him that the both of us could live in a guest villa on the grounds. It was almost too good to be true, but the King and Queen took care of us. Bellamy and Finn grew to be best friends, and I ended up being a guard as well. I trained in all sorts of martial arts so that it put me above Bellamy.” She chuckles. “He didn’t mind, because he wants to go back to school eventually. I, obviously got the Security Chief job several years later, and here we are.”

“Wow.” Raven exhales. “That’s a pretty badass story. Not going to lie. Sounds like something out of a movie.”

“It does.” Octavia agrees with a smile. “I would ask you both what led you here, and what you’ve done with your lives before now, but I kind of already know.” She smirks and Raven and Clarke’s eyes widen. “It’s my job to know.”

Clarke laughs, followed by Raven even though it’s kind of creepy that Octavia may know some of their darkest secrets and weaknesses. “Well, since it’s your job to know things…” Clarke grins at her new friend. “Could you fill a girl in on all of the Ladies in the court vying for the Prince’s affection?” She shrugs when Octavia smirks. “I’m sort of at a disadvantage and would love some Cliff Notes.”

“Of course.” The shorter woman replies. “I would be happy to give you whatever information you might find useful.”

“Okay.” Clarke smiles, glad to have Octavia here to help her. “Let’s hear about these other girls.”

The next hour is spent with Octavia telling Clarke and Raven about the other women that are potential suitors for the Prince. There’s Lady Harper McIntyre, who apparently is known for her ability to schmooze her way into any type of royal event imaginable. The King and Queen like her enough, and she will be a force to be reckoned with when everything begins. 

Another suitor is Lady Zoe Monroe. Octavia says that, for the most part, Zoe is very quiet and keeps to herself a lot. She’s known Finn for several years, but the two have never really hit it off. His parent’s love her, but Octavia doesn’t see her as a threat and neither should Clarke.

Apparently, there’s a girl named Niylah. Clarke can’t remember her last name because it was something that she could barely pronounce, but she’s new to the Arkadian scene. Octavia says that Niylah is very pretty, but several years older than Finn. Her family deals in a lot of trade for the country, and is very well liked by the court.

And lastly, a girl that terrifies Clarke and she hasn’t even met her yet. Alexandria Woods. Clarke could tell that when Octavia spoke of her, that the girl was a force to be reckoned with. Alexandria’s mother passed when she was a baby, but her father is still very much alive. He’s the commanding officer of the Royal forces, and his daughter is set to replace him when he retires. Although being a Queen would normally cancel being a General out, Octavia says that the Woods girl is still planning only running the forces as Queen. It would be the first that anyone has ever done that. Even though Alexandria seems like some sort of war machine, Clarke’s new friend has informed her that Alexandria and her father are very much liked by the people of Arkadia and she will be Clarke’s top opponent in the suitor pool.

“Wow.” Clarke exhales and leans back on the sofa beside Raven. “That’s a lot to take in.”

“Nervous, Griff?” Raven teases. 

“Of course not. I have nothing to be nervous about. I barely even know Finn. I’m just here to give him a shot, but dealing with these other girls is going to be a lot harder than I originally planned.”

 

//

 

Later in the evening, as Clarke is preparing for bed, she hears a soft knock at the door of her room. She immediately wonders who it could be and she pulls her shorts back up her legs because she usually opts to sleep in just a shirt. As soon as her shorts are pulled up and secured Clarke makes her way to the ornate door to answer it. When she opens it however, it’s nowhere near the person that she thought that it might be.

“Finn.” She gasps, and immediately regrets it because she knows now that he is a prince. Not just some guy she met in a bar. The formal greeting that she is supposed to use has seemed to have left her at the moment. Clearly Finn doesn’t mind, though. His smile is wide and Clarke can’t help but smile back. He really is too cute, and the epitome of what a prince should look like in her opinion. If only he were a little bit taller. She simply shakes her head and runs a hand through her hair nervously. “Uh, um - I’m so sorry.” She frantically thinks of how she’s supposed to address him. “Your highness?” It came out more as a question and Finn starts to chuckle. 

“Clarke, it’s fine.” He grins. “Honestly, when it’s just the two of us you can call me Finn.” He doesn’t know why, but he has an odd feeling to hug her but he refrains from doing so. He places his hands behind his back and clears his throat. Clarke would almost think that the man is nervous. “You don’t know how happy I am to see you here. When Wells told me that he had invited you out for this whole -” He waves his hand in the air at nothing in particular. “Charade… And that you actually agreed, I was quite surprised.”

“Trust me.” She replies, more to herself than anything. “I surprised myself.”

“Look,” Finn says, still trying to wipe the small grin from his face. He is truly excited to see the gorgeous blonde here, in his country of all places. “I wanted to come by and apologize for everything before the events get started tomorrow evening. We won’t have as much time as I would like to have with you then, so I wanted to do this now.” He takes a deep breath and searches her face. The blonde raises her brow, urging him to continue. “I should have told you the truth when I was in New York. It’s just - it was nice, you know? Meeting someone that treated me like a normal person and not like a member of a Royal Family. I realize now that allowing you to believe that I was at my bachelor party, flirting with you - well, that made me looks like a complete worthless fool.”

“An asshole.” Clarke chimes in. She’s never been one to hold back what she wanted to say, and she didn’t think that she should start now. Not even with a prince. Luckily, Finn only chuckled at her calling him an ‘asshole’. 

“Yes.” He nods. “That was definitely the move of an asshole. I should have explained to you then that I didn’t have a fiance and that the bachelor party was a little premature.”

“So, you just let me believe that? Why didn’t you come and explain it to me?”

The prince fidgets with the collar of his shirt for a moment, and Clarke can see that he’s clearly nervous. “I saw the way you looked at me. Like I was just another one of those guys that tries to pick up whatever girl that he wants. It made it look like I was insulting you, and I’m terribly sorry for everything. I don’t know what else to say to you to make it better. Please tell me.” He grins. “I’ll do anything.”

Clarke waits a little longer before responding. She wants to see the prince sweat, and he looks adorable fidgeting nervously. After another few seconds, she smiles and shakes her head. “It’s good to know that a crowned-prince owes me a favor, but you don’t have to apologize anymore Finn. I understand why you didn’t tell me. I’m just some random bartender in another country. You can’t just come right out and say something like that to a stranger.”

He chuckles, and he is visibly relieved. “You’re not just some random bartender, Clarke. I’m glad that you’re here to give me a chance to show you what kind of guy that I am. It means the world to me that someone like you would be even remotely interested in me.”

“Someone like me?”

Finn laughs at her the blonde across from him. Clarke’s face is one of confusion, and he finds it rather endearing. “Yes. A gorgeous, smart, head-strong woman with a good sense of humor.” He shrugs. “I find that you’re sort of a rare breed.”

Clarke chuckles and looks to her feet nervously. “Well, you must have women just throwing themselves at your feet. I mean, come on - you’re a prince. A handsome prince at that.”

Finn grins back at her. “Is there any other kind?” Clarke shakes her head as she laughs. She’s really liking this Finn so far. She feels a lot better about this situation now that she’s finally seen him and gotten to talk to him. It’s sort of a weight off of her shoulders that she hadn’t realized that she was carrying. “Thank you again, Clarke. For coming to Arkadia. For forgiving me. For giving me a chance to show you the real me. I can’t wait to get to know you better over the next few months.”

“I look forward to it, as well.” She smiles sweetly, and it’s then that she hears a voice clear their throat from behind the prince. Finn only slightly turns his head to look behind him and Clarke’s eyes follow. She hadn’t even noticed Bellamy standing off to the side behind the door, and then she remembers that Octavia had told her that her brother is the lead of Finn’s security team.

“Well,” Finn says, turning back around to look at her with a soft smile. “It seems that I should be getting back to my Wing. I will be eagerly awaiting your arrival at the ball tomorrow evening, Lady Clarke.” He takes her hand and winks before kissing the back of it. “Sleep well.” He says before retreating back into the darkness of the hallway with Bellamy right on his heels.

“Lady Clarke?” She says to herself as she closes the door. She didn’t like the title, but she knew that she would most certainly have to get used to it. Wells had explained to her earlier in the day that that would be how people greeted her once they learned of the American girl vying for the Prince’s affections. “This just got a lot more real.” She huffs, before removing her shorts and hopping into the mammoth bed at the back of the room.

 

//

 

“Shouldn’t you be like - you know? Setting a perimeter or placing your snipers somewhere?” Raven asks jokingly, as she let’s Octavia into Clarke’s bedroom.

“All of that is taken care of.” Octavia replies seriously and Raven doesn’t know if she’s joking or not. “I’m here to see which dress Clarke has decided on. The ball kicks off in -” The smaller woman looks down to her wrist as she pulls the black sleeve of her blazer back to look at her watch. “Just over an hour.”

“So, basically you came to hang out with us as we prep for the big schindig?” Raven pokes as she plops down onto the couch in the sitting area of the blonde’s room. Raven’s been ready for almost an hour. She’s never been one to be early for a party, but she’s willing to make an exception with this one.

“Basically.” Octavia responds, sitting down beside the other brunette. She wouldn’t admit it to Raven, but she had actually really enjoyed her time with the girl and Clarke the previous day. Octavia finds herself working too much, and there are never girls her age around the castle. Having Clarke and Raven here is pretty nice, and even better that they’re normal human beings and not some stuck up heiresses of some sort. “So, is Clarke ready?”

“Pretty much. Her hair and make-up are done. She’s in there picking out which of her new dresses to wear.” Raven herself is wearing a very form-fitting sleek, black dress. A slit comes up to her mid-thigh, but Octavia had told her the previous day that Arkadians didn’t find much too scandalous in the way of their clothing so the dress should be fine to wear to such an event. “You wearing that black pantsuit the rest of the night?”

“Yes.” The shorter woman nods and crosses her legs. Raven can see that she has decided on a pair of black stilletos with her suit tonight instead of the monstrosity of a pair of clogs she was wearing the day before. “I’ll be on duty all evening. Can’t have the Security Chief off on one of the biggest nights of the season.”

“I guess that makes sense.” Raven agrees, and the bathroom door swings open only a moment later and her blonde best friend walks out.

“I can’t get this zipped.” The blonde huffs, while she turns awkwardly trying to grab onto the zipper behind her. She groans loudly when she just can’t seem to get to it. “Fuck me.”

“Yes ma’am.” Raven chirps and walks over to her best friend, waggling her eyebrows suggestively. Clarke rolls her eyes. 

“Been there, don’t that.”

“Hey!” Raven exclaims. “I rocked your world, Griffin.” It’s at that time that Clarke notices Octavia in the room and needless to say, the Security Chief’s face looks quite shocked.

“Oh hey, Octavia!” Clarke grins. “What’s wrong?”

“Oh - umm, nothing. It’s nothing.” Octavia fumbles over her words and looks at her hands in her lap. 

Clarke watches her for a second before realizing what might be going on. “Being gay is frowned upon here, isn’t it?” She asks the question, but somehow she already seems to know the answer. Raven looks to Octavia for her answer when the shorter woman looks up from her lap. 

“Unfortunately.” She almost whispers. 

“I like this place a lot less, all of a sudden.” Raven huffs, as she finishes zipping up Clarke’s dress and moves to sit down on the bed. 

“It’s mostly just the older members of the court and monarchy.” Octavia tries to explain. “It’s very high on the Prince’s ‘to-do list’ when he becomes King.” Clarke walks over and sits down beside Octavia. She smiles softly at the smaller woman. “I have no problem with it, and neither does Finn or Bellamy for that matter. It’s just not openly talked about here, so I’m not sure who is accepting of it or not.” She looks to Clarke and then over to Raven. “I’m sorry.”

“Hey.” Clarke says with a grin. “It’s okay. Well, I mean… it’s not okay, but it’s like that most places. A lot of people still don’t agree with it. Maybe one day soon that will change.”

Octavia smiles back. “I know it will here. Especially when Finn takes the throne.”

“I like this guy already.” Raven chimes in, and quickly tries to change the subject. “Clarke - “ The Latina wolf-whistles. “You’re looking like a million bucks right about now.” The blonde stands and twirls in place. She really does feel like a Princess in the moment. The dress that she decided on wearing for the first ball is strapless with a sweetheart-cut neckline. It poofs out towards the bottom like a typical Disney-princess dress would. It’s a deep red color with ornate, gold trim along the bottom and the same gold design around the bodice. Her hair is partially up and her make-up is done simply, but elegantly. 

“You think?” She asks, still twirling. 

“I’d say two-million.” Octavia pipes up with a smile. “At least.”

“Thanks guys. I’ve never been this excited for something.”

“Seriously?” Raven asks. “You’re not nervous? I’m so fucking nervous and I’m not even one of these suitors.”

“Wait.” Clarke chuckles. “THE Raven Reyes is nervous? Wow. You never cease to amaze me.”

Raven rolls her eyes and looks over to Octavia. “That’s what she said to me after we -”

“Raven!” Clarke yells and throws the nearest item to her. A throw pillow. Raven and Octavia both laugh, and the trio continue to talk for another few minutes before Octavia leads them towards the ballroom.

 

//

 

Raven whistles as she takes in the sight of the great room in front of them. The domed ceiling is uniquely decorated in gold trimming and renaissance-period paintings. Clarke makes a mental note to examine them further at a later time, but right now she has to get her game-face on if she has any hope of impressing some of these Nobles. The bright white, marble flooring is almost too shiny and the columns that are spaced evenly throughout the room seem to stretch towards the heavens. “I feel like I’m in Beauty and the Beast right now.” The Latina says, with her head still tilted back staring at the ceiling.

“I’m Beauty and you’re the beast, right?” Clarke teases.

“Shut the hell up, Griffin.”

“Okay.” Octavia chuckles. “As much as I would enjoy seeing some of these Nobles’ faces when Raven curses in front of them, you might want to hold of on saying anything too crude.”

“I agree.” Clarke nods at Raven.

“What?” Raven huffs and then looks to Octavia. “Clarke will just as easily cuss as much as me.”

“I have a filter.” Clarke argues and Raven just sticks out her tongue. “We promise to keep the cursing to a bare minimum.” Clarke says jokingly to the Security Chief.

“I can work with that. Also, since the majority of the Ladies that will be here tonight actually have security teams of their own, I will be staying with the two of you. That way, I can watch your backs and answer any questions that you might have.”

“That’s great.” Clarke smiles. “I honestly don’t know what I would do without you here, Octavia. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” 

The ballroom starts to fill quickly. It looks like something straight out of a movie with couples dancing and twirling around the hall. Each dress catches Clarke’s eye in someway, and she never thought in a million years that she would be somewhere like this. “Incoming.” Octavia whispers to the blonde and Clarke turns her head to where her new friend is looking. She sees a petite blonde girl in a gorgeous blue, floral dress headed their way. The girl is grinning, but to Clarke, she looks as if she’s up to something. “That’s Harper McIntyre. One of the suitors.” Octavia fills her in and Clarke nods her head.

“Ahh… the schmoozer?” Clarke asks, and Octavia only nods with a grin.

“Lady Clarke.” Harper grins as she walks up and extends her hand. Clarke can only wonder how this girls knew who she was. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.” Clarke smiles widely. She can play the part too. She grabs onto the other blonde’s hand and shakes. 

“You as well, Lady Harper.” The other woman raises her eyebrow, seemingly surprised that Clarke knew who she was.

“I’ve heard a bit about you.” Her lips tighten a small amount. “The American girl that somehow worked her way into a pool of suitors to be a future Queen.” Harper says it sweetly, but Clarke can tell that she’s trying to be condescending in her own way.

“And you’re the girl that supposedly has the King and Queen eating out of the palm of her hand.”

It took everything in Octavia and Raven not to burst out into a fit of laughter at the look on Harper’s face. Priceless. Harper nods, her smile now completely gone. “It was interesting to finally meet you, Lady Clarke. Enjoy your evening.” She says, looking Clarke up and down before turning and walking away.

“Nice to meet you, too.” Raven all but yells as the girl walks away. Clarke turns to Octavia and raises an eyebrow as if asking a question and the Security Chief chuckles.

“I think that you’re going to do quite well here.”

 

//

 

After another half hour or so, Clarke has met two more suitors. Zoe Monroe and Niylah Waldau. Octavia was right, when she had told Clarke that Zoe was quite. The girl barely spoke, but she seemed nice enough. Niylah seemed nice as well, but Clarke knows that when it comes down to it, the other blonde would stop at nothing to get what she wants. The crown.

Clarke was now waiting patiently to meet the King and Queen. The herald had called out their entrance about ten minutes ago, and Octavia told Clarke that each suitor would now introduce themselves to the monarchs, even though they new everyone but Clarke. She sees Harper finally leave the regal couples’ side, and Octavia pushes her up towards them. She catches Finn’s eye as she approaches and he smiles brightly and winks without anyone noticing. Clarke stops in front of the King Verald and Queen Katherine with a smile on her face. She does a deep curtsy and manages to do it quite gracefully. “Your majesties.”

They both smile at her and the King speaks, his voice carrying louder that Clarke had expected it to. “Ah. You must be Lady Clarke from -” He looks over to Finn and then back to Clarke. “New York was it?”

“Yes, your majesty.”

“Our son has spoken very highly of you, my dear. The Queen and I are very interested in learning more about you.”

“Thank you.” She smiles, not really knowing what to say. “I look forward to learning more about your majesties and the Prince, as well as the history of this beautiful country.” Clarke is fairly certain that she hears Raven, somewhere far behind her laughing.

“We are pleased to hear it.” Queen Katherine speaks up and smiles. “We hope that you enjoy your brief stay here.” Clarke raises an eyebrow at the Queen’s choice of words. Clearly Katherine does not believe that Clarke has what it takes to be here. Hell. She might be right. 

Before Clarke can respond, Finn steps down and offer her his gloved hand. His white suite is decorated in cold design across the chest with red and gold shoulder pads sitting neatly upon his shoulders. His hair is combed and sleeked back nicely, unlike how he had it flowing freely when she had first met him at the bar in New York. The first thing that comes to her mind when she sees his outfit is Prince Charming. She smiles. “Would you care to dance Lady Clarke?” He grins.

Clarke does a small curtsy just to get a chuckle out of him and accepts his outstretched hand. He leads her out onto the dance floor and she’s not too sure as to what to do. She’s danced at proms and formals before, but that was just swaying back and forth. This is something completely different and choreographed. She absolutely cannot waltz. Clarke had seen him dancing with Harper and Zoe earlier, and they seemed to flow gracefully across the floor. She just knew that she was going to face plant. Finn must notice her thinking too much about it, when he pulls her just a little closer. “They don’t waltz in New York?” He teases, trying to calm her nerves if she may have any. 

“THEY may.” She grins as he begins to lead around the dance floor slowly. “I, on the other hand, tend to stick to ‘The Sprinkler’.” Finn can’t help himself. He literally laughs out loud, gaining the attention of several people around them. 

“Now that, I would love to see.”

“Maybe one day you’ll be lucky enough to witness my sheer raw talent.” She jokes.

“Oh, I do hope so.”

The pair dance for the entirety of the song that’s playing before the Prince has to excuse himself to go mingle with other suitors and guests. He kisses the back of her hand before he leaves, and Clarke makes her way back over to where Octavia and Raven are chatting with each other in the corner. “Nice waltzing skills, Griff.” Raven jokes as Clarke approaches.

“Shut the fu -” Clarke catches herself and glances to Octavia, who is smirking with a raised brow. “Shut up.” The blonde corrects herself.

“I think that you did pretty good for your first go around.” Octavia states. “Plus, it seemed like you did well with meeting the King and Queen.”

“Yeah.” Clarke sighs. “I think that it went okay, but the Queen said something that kind of made me think that she doesn’t want me here.”

“Queen Katherine is a very lovely person, but she’s also into the traditionalism of having Noble blood to marry into the Royal Family.” Octavia says.

“I figured that out.” Clarke huffs and grabs a glass of champagne off of a tray as a waiter walks by.

“You and Finny boy seemed to having a good time.” Raven says and Clarke rolls her eyes.

“Raven, you can’t call him that. He’s a Prince for God’s sake.” She looks around them to make sure that no one had heard. They hadn’t. “But yes - we were having a good time. He’s cool.” Before Clarke can say anything else, she feels a tap on her shoulder and when she turns around she sees a friendly, familiar face. “Wells!” She moves to embrace him, trying to spill her flute of champagne. “I was wondering where you were.”

He returns her hug and smiles at her when she pulls back. “I’m sorry that I’m late. My father and I had a meeting run later than expected.” He glances over at his friend, Octavia, and grins. “I’m glad to see Octavia could accompany you both. I know what a handful Miss Reyes can be.” He teases the Latina. 

“I resent that.” Raven fires back, and then grabs his hand to pull him onto the dance floor causing Octavia and Clarke to laugh.

“She’s - something else.” The Security Chief says to her new friend.

“Yep.” Clarke responds, watching her friend and Wells dance. “So, I noticed Bellamy posted up in the corner over there.” She nods her head towards the back entrance of the ballroom. “He looks grumpy.”

Octavia laughs. “Yeah. He is. He wanted to wear some sort of blue velvet tux tonight, and I told him ‘no’ and to keep his ensemble black.”

“Blue velvet?” Clarke turns up her nose and both girls laugh. 

Something catches Octavia’s eyes over Clarke’s shoulder and the shorter girl grins. “Finally.” She huffs. “Lexa’s here.” Clarke turns to spot who Octavia is looking at, and coming through the doors she sees her. This girl’s legs seem to be a mile long in her sheer, champagne-colored dress. It seems to have a cream-colored, high-waisted pair of tiny shorts built into it, as well as champagne-colored pads over each breast, but the rest of the dress in entirely sheer with gold glitter scattered across the material. Her long, brunette hair is down and the curls seems to cascade over the girl’s strong shoulders. Her make-up, like Clarke’s, is simple but elegant. And don’t even get Clarke started on the woman’s jawline or her collarbones. Clarke never knew that collarbones could be sexy, but you learn something new everyday. She can see that almost every eye in the room seems to fall on the girl as she walks through the crowds, smiling and greeting people as she passes on her way to see the Royal Family.

Clarke turns back to Octavia, where the shorter woman seems to be looking at her rather odd. She realizes that she herself was probably staring open-mouthed at the tall woman that had just entered. “Uh - I like her dress.” Is all that she could say, and luckily for her Octavia didn’t seem to notice.

“Yeah.” Octavia smiles. “Lexa always has the best wardrobe wherever she goes.”

“You know her?”

“Of course.” Octavia replies. “She’s one of my best friends. She, Finn, Bellamy, and I have known each other for years.”

“Who is she?” Clarke asks, looking back over her shoulder at Lexa chatting friendly with the King and Queen, saying something to make them laugh out loud.

“Lexa Woods.” Octavia says, causing Clarke to turn around with wide eyes. “Alexandria Woods to everyone else.” She corrects herself, knowing that Lexa doesn’t like everyone calling her ‘Lexa’. “She’s the last suitor.”

Clarke never turns back to Octavia. Her mouth is more than likely hanging open, if only slightly, and her eyes are wide. All Clarke can think is ‘This is who she’s up against?’ Not because Finn will most definitely pick Lexa over her, but because…. well, Alexandria Woods is fucking hot.

“I’m so royally screwed.” Clarke breathes.


	2. Running Into Each Other

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lots of Clexa interaction in this chapter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, here's the second chapter. Hope you all enjoy it! Love you guys. :)

Clarke never turns back to Octavia. Her mouth is more than likely hanging open, if only slightly, and her eyes are wide. All Clarke can think is ‘This is who she’s up against?’ Not because Finn will most definitely pick Lexa over her, but because…. well, Alexandria Woods is fucking hot.

“I’m so royally screwed.” Clarke breathes.

 

//

 

“What was that?” Clarke hears Octavia ask, although her ears seemed to be muffled. She seems to have drifted off into her own little world filled with long tanned legs and chiseled jawbones. She turns around to see the Security Chief looking at her with a confused expression enveloping her face. “Clarke, are you okay?”

When Clarke finally drags her head out of her ass, she speaks with a small smile. “Oh. I’m sorry, Octavia. I - uh, got caught up watching Raven and Wells dancing.” She really hopes that Octavia doesn’t catch on. Clarke has never considered herself a good liar. She’s awful at it, to be honest. “They’re too funny.” The blonde chuckles and breathes a sigh of relief when the shorter woman agrees with her.

“That they are. What would we do without our friends?”

“Very good question.” Clarke smiles and after another couple of minutes of dancing, Raven and Wells join them once more. “The two of you have a good time?”

“Wells is a shitty dancer.” Raven chimes in, taking Clarke’s flute from her hand and drinking the rest of her friend’s champagne. 

“What?” The man beside her gawks. “I am a superb dancer, thank you very much. I took lessons for five years in ballroom.”

“Yeah, yeah.” The beautiful Latina woman huffs. “We get it, you’re perfect.” The group laughs when Wells rolls his eyes at the girl’s antics. “Speaking of perfect… did you guys see the goddess that walked in a few minutes ago?”

“Who?” Wells asks, slightly confused and Raven turns around, her eyes scanning the crowd of people looking for the girl that she was talking about. 

“I don’t see her anym - oh, here she is.” Raven all but whispers the last part because she sees the topic of their conversation approaching them with a smile on her face. The tall woman walks up to Octavia and pulls her into a tight hug.

“Octavia Blake.” She says admiringly. “I was hoping that you would be here this evening.” Letting go of the shorter woman, she steps back a step or two. 

“It’s been too long, Lexa.” Octavia grins from ear to ear. “I thought that I saw a ghost when you came walking through that door.”

“More like goddess.” Raven chimed in, and Clarke wanted to go hide in the corner somewhere because of course Raven would say something like that to someone as powerful as Lexa. Lexa looks to Raven with a raised brow and a smirk on her face before looking back to Octavia. 

“Friend of yours, O?”

Octavia rolled her eyes. “You could say that.” She gestures to Raven and then over to Clarke. “Alexandria Woods, this is Raven Reyes and Clarke Griffin.” Lexa looks at Raven with the same smirk and nods and then over to the blonde off to her right. 

How could she have just noticed this girl? Her eyes unconsciously roam over the girl and take in the gorgeous dress that she’s wearing, and more importantly all of the pale skin that seems to be displayed above her sweetheart neckline. Lexa swallows whatever lump has formed in her throat and then her eyes shoot directly back up to the girl’s face. Her blue eyes are almost blindingly bright, and Lexa prays that she didn’t just get caught staring. That would not be good. After a second or so, the name starts to ring inside her head. Clarke Griffin. Shit. This is the girl that she’s heard about. The girl that came from the States to be a suitor for the throne. Well, this just got to be a lot harder. “Clarke Griffin?” She asks, even though she knows. “The mystery suitor?” Her voice is smooth and strong and she knows that it intimidates a lot of people. She was practically raised to be intimidating.

“That’s right.” The blonde speaks, and it surprises Lexa at how raspy her voice is. Unfortunately, she likes it a lot. Too much. “And you’re my competition?” Clarke asks with a slight smirk of her own, hoping that she’s not as red-faced as she feels, because Lexa is so gorgeous it almost makes it hard for her to breathe in such close proximity to the taller woman.

“Honestly, I thought that I had this is the bag.” Lexa says with a shrug and bit of cockiness that Clarke found a little bit sexy. Okay. A lot sexy. That Arkadian accent is just too hot on Lexa. “But now that I’ve met you, Lady Clarke, I can see that I have some stiff competition.”

Clarke raised a brow at the other woman and made no effort to say anything else, because she didn’t know what else to say. What do you say to something like that? Was Lexa flirting with her? No. Not possible. Right? All that Clarke can do is grin and she doesn’t know how long they grin at each other, but Wells interrupts by clearing his throat. Clarke honestly forgot that there’s other people present. 

“Octavia, would you like to dance?” He holds his hand out to his friend, and she looks at Lexa knowingly before accepting Wells’ outstretched hand. The pair walk off, leaving Clarke, Raven, and Lexa standing there looking a little uncomfortable. At least, it felt uncomfortable to Clarke. 

“Uh -” Raven starts in and Clarke immediately knows what her best friend is about to do and she already wants to kill her. Her friend looks over Lexa’s shoulder and nods her head upwards a bit as if saying ‘hello’ to someone. “I think that I see someone I know. Better go and say ‘hi’.” And before Clarke can argue and say that Raven doesn’t know a soul here, her friend is gone leaving Clarke alone with the goddess that is Lexa Woods.

Lexa chuckles and grabs a glass of champagne that’s offered to her by a nearby waiter. “Who could your friend possibly know in a place like this?”

“That is a very good question.” Clarke replies, smiling sweetly at the girl, that for some strange reason is giving her heart palpitations. “What can I say, she never meets a stranger…”

Lexa smiles. “Good to know.” Clarke only nods and looks down at her drink. “So, tell me Lady Clarke - how did you manage all of this?”

“What? Meet a Prince and get invited to be in a pool of suitors to marry him?” The blonde asks sarcastically and Lexa laughs. The sound makes warmth spread through Clarke’s chest and she smiles dumbly. “I was um - working one night. Bar-tending, and Fi… the Prince came into the bar where I work in New York with his whole crew for his bachelor party. We got to talking and had a good time. Wells dropped by my apartment, creepily might I add, and told me everything. He invited me to come to this. It took some convincing because I thought that he was just screwing with me, you know? He told me that he saw how the Prince acted with me and he just wants his friend to be happy if he’s forced into marriage - and please… call me Clarke. I’m not a Lady.”

Lexa hums as she takes a sip of her drink and then eyes Clarke up and down again. “You sure do look like a lady, Clarke.” She grins from ear to ear and Clarke rolls her eyes.

“You know what I mean.” Clarke finds it too easy to talk to this stranger and it’s a bit frightening. She’s here to get to know Finn. That’s it.

“I know. I’m kidding, but Wells is right.” She adds and Clarke looks at her in question. “Finn deserves to be happy. He’s one of my oldest friends and he’s a great guy with big plans for our country.”

“So I’ve heard.” Clarke smiles. “Do you love him?” Clarke doesn’t know where the question comes from. It catches both her and Lexa off guard, but the brunette is quick to fix her wide eyes. “I just mean, you’re friends and you obviously care about him… why haven’t you already gotten married?”

Lexa laughs, mostly to herself because it’s complicated. Very complicated. She does love Finn, but only as a friend and she knows that the two of them can do great things for Arkadia if they are King and Queen. They are both willing to make the sacrifice of not marrying someone that they love romantically, to rule their kingdom and bring their country into a better day and age. All Lexa can say is, “He isn’t really my type.” She looks Clarke deeply in the eyes, hoping that Clarke can read what she’s not saying out loud. At what she can’t say out loud. 

Clarke almost says something to her, but Wells and Octavia pop back over with smiles on their faces. “The two of you haven’t killed each other yet, so that’s a plus.” Wells jokes and Lexa rolls her eyes. He then extends his hand to Clarke and asks her to dance, to which she accepts and follows him onto the dance floor. Lexa’s eyes not so subtly follow Clarke.

“Lexa.” Octavia sighs, walking up closer to her friend. “Your gay is showing.” The shorter woman teases and laughs when Lexa’s face goes red. She’s not one to get embarrassed about anything, but that caught her off guard. It’s been several months since she saw Octavia and the rest of their friends. Lexa’s been away training troops at the main base several hundred miles away, but before she left, she told her closest friends about her biggest secret. Now, Lexa isn’t one to hide from anything, but if she wants to protect her country the way that only she thinks that she can… she can’t have her father, the King and Queen, and the rest of the royal court knowing that she is gay. Gayer than gay, actually.

Lexa groans, but chuckles at her smaller friend’s antics. “Shut up, O. I told you that in confidence.”

“I know, I know. I’m kidding.” Octavia smiles softly and pats Lexa’s shoulder. “I just wish that there was another way.”

Raising a brow in question and then taking another sip from her flute, Lexa asks “Another way?”

“Lexa, you deserve to be happy. Marrying Finn, no matter how close the two of you are as friends is not what you want.” The shorter woman can see Lexa’s jaw tighten and her teeth grind a bit. Octavia knows that she’s hit some sort of nerve, but she can’t just sit back and watch this happen. 

“It doesn’t matter what I want, Octavia.”

“Of course it does.” Octavia huffs and crosses her arms in front of her. “You deserve to be happy too.”

“My duty is to my people and to my country, Octavia. You know that I will become General of the Armed Forces of Arkadia in a month’s time after my father steps down. I have been molded to be this person. To be a leader and once I’m Queen, Finn and I will bring our country into the Twenty-First Century and we will fix it so that others like me can be open and happy.” Lexa always speaks of Arkadia with so much passion. She always inspires the people around her with her ideas and undying love for her people. It just breaks Octavia’s heart that Lexa is willing to deny herself happiness to lead a people, most of whom do not accept her lifestyle.

“Lexa -”

“That’s enough, Octavia.” Lexa says softly, but adds a small smile to show her friend that she’s not mad. Just done talking about this. “I really need to go mingle. I need to discuss the develops of farmland at our bases with Duke Jaha, if you’ll excuse me.” And with that, she walks off and leaves Octavia standing there alone.

 

//

 

“Ahh -” An older man in Royal military garb sighs as Lexa approaches himself and Thelonius Jaha. He brings her in for a hug when she’s close enough and squeezes her tightly before releasing her. “Alexandria, I’ve been waiting for your arrival. I was just discussing the new farmland proposal for the bases with Duke Jaha here.”

Lexa’s face shows no sign of emotion. She’s always been one to keep her emotions very well in control, but her insides are wreaking turmoil on her. Everything that Octavia had just said to her was completely and utterly true. It’s stupid to marry her best friend if she doesn’t love him romantically. She doesn’t like men romantically at all. It’s just that Lexa feels that this is above her feelings. It’s above her happiness. She was and always will be a leader of her people, no matter the cost. She attempts to push the feelings aside for now so that she can carry on an intellectual conversation. “Duke Jaha.” She greets the taller man in front of her with a nod. She places her hands behind her back in a stance that she uses for intimidation purposes. She stands tall and sure with her chin held high and strong. She looks to the man dressed as an officer. “Father. I thought that I would be the one to discuss the proposal with the Duke. I thought that you said it would be a good diplomatic tutorial for me.”

General Woods sighs and stands very similar to his daughter. “Yes. We did discuss that, didn’t we? I apologize, Alexandria.” He looks to the Duke, who’s face seems blank and somewhat cold. “I had asked my daughter to have this conversation with you, Thelonius, but my mind must have slipped on that fact.”

“It’s quite alright, General.” Jaha replies with a soft voice. Unlike his son, he’s never been much of a people person and most people don’t take very kindly to him no matter how much good he’s done for Arkadia in the agricultural business. Lexa’s never liked him. “I would much rather discuss issues such as this with the man in charge anyway.” He makes sure to emphasize on the word ‘man’. He’s a sort of radical, who most certainly believes that the leader of the Royal forces should be a male. Not a female. That’s where he has a problem with Lexa.

“I won’t be in charge for long, Duke Jaha.” The General says sharply. He knows how a lot of the older leaders in Arkadia view his daughter coming into power of the military, but he doesn’t care. There’s no one who can do it better. There’s no one that he trusts with this other than his only daughter. “In a month’s time, Alexandria will the new General in charge. Might as well get her started on some of our growing issues.”

Lexa watches silently from beside her father. She can see the way that the Duke’s jaw grinds and tightens. He’s angry, but he will definitely not show it. “She must pass the vote of the Court first, General. Alexandria can’t just simply take it.”

The brunette tightens her hands in fists behind her back. The nerve of this guy always gets to her. She would almost give up all of her power just to deck him one good time. “My daughter,” her father speaks a little more loudly. His voice is always strong and inspiring in times of need. He is just as passionate about things as Lexa is. “Will pass the vote. The people love her. The Court adores her, and they’ve watched her grow up to become a fine young woman and future leader of this great country. There’s no one I trust more with our military than my daughter. You’ll do well to remember that, Duke.”

Lexa looks to her feet for a moment because she can’t help the small smile that creeps up onto her face and the way that Jaha looks completely frazzled. She and her father have that effect on people. The Duke schools his features and a small smirks forms on his lips. “Of course, General.” He nods and then nods to Lexa. She doesn’t miss the glare that he throws her way. “Alexandria, good luck with the vote.” And he walks away.

“What an asshole.” Lexa says, releasing her hands from behind her and finally loosening up a bit. 

“Alexandria.” Her father warns, but she sees the hint of a smile.

“He is. It’s because of small-minded people like him that this country is in the state that it’s in.” She looks around to make sure she isn’t gaining any unwanted attention and runs a hand through her long brown hair. “Yes. I’m a woman, but I can damn well lead these forces better than any man out there. I was born and raised for this.” She looks to her father with wide eyes when she realizes that she just said ‘better than any man’. 

General Woods laughs at the look on his daughter’s face. “That’s exactly right, Alexandria.” He places his hands on her shoulders and looks her in the eyes. “Better than any man.”

 

//

 

A couple of hours later, Clarke, Raven and Octavia are exiting the ballroom. The crowds had left the castle, all except for the suitor and their teams that are staying there. Clarke decided that she actually had a really good time, other than the slight shade she was thrown by a few of the other suitors and the Queen. As the three of them make their way down the massive corridors, they hear footsteps behind them and turn around. “Bellamy.” Octavia says. “Why aren’t you with the Prince?”

“Chill out, baby sis.” He winks at her and all three girls roll their eyes. “I need to borrow Blondie.”

“For what?” Octavia and Clarke ask at the same time.

He motions for her to follow him. “Someone wants to meet with you.” When he turns, Octavia starts to go with her, but he immediately holds up a hand. “Privately. You can escort Miss Reyes back to her room and I’ll make sure that Lady Clarke gets back to hers momentarily.” Octavia doesn’t argue, even though she hates to miss a chance at arguing with her older brother. She knows that it’s probably just Finn wanting to spend a moment alone with Clarke, so she nods to the blonde before turning and walking with Raven up the grand staircase. “Follow me.”

“Do you always tell your bosses to ‘chill out’?” Clarke teases as she falls in step beside the tall man. 

She hears Bellamy chuckle from beside her. “I find that I can get away with quite a bit with my boss.”

“I highly doubt that.”

After a few minutes of walking, they find themselves in a part of the castle that Clarke hasn’t been too yet. Though, to be fair, she hasn’t really had the chance to explore a whole lot yet. Bellamy escorts Clarke to a large mahogany door with possibly the biggest door handles on it that she’s ever seen. He pushes them open and motions for her to step inside and then the doors close behind her. Bellamy didn’t follow her in. “Clarke.” She hears a familiar voice. She smiles when she sees Finn standing from behind a antique desk. “I’m sorry that I had to send Bellamy after you.” He motions towards his desk. “I had a few more things to take care of before I head up to my quarters.”

“No problem.” She smiles and he walks around to the front of the desk to lean against the edge. 

“You seem to have done well for your first event with lots of intimidating people.” The Prince grins. “Trust me, I would know.”

“You’ll find that it takes a lot to scare me.” She smiles at him and then takes in her surroundings. It’s a library and her thoughts immediately go back to mimic Raven’s statement from earlier. She really does feel like she’s in Beauty and the Beast. The stacks of books seem to stretch to the sky. Clarke never knew that there were even this many books published, let alone someone could have so many. Perks of being a Royal, she guess. 

“I have no doubt about that. You did well with meeting the King and Queen. My father seemed very impressed.”

She sighs with a chuckle. “He seems like a great man. I don’t think that the Queen likes me very much.”

Finn hums. “It’s not that she doesn’t like you. She’s just one of the many older leaders in this country that believe that you must have Noble blood to marry into the Royal Family.”

“I’m starting to think that a lot of people don’t want me here.”

“I want you here.” He smiles softly, sticking his hands into his pockets and crossing his feet. “Have you had trouble with someone?”

“No, no.” Clarke sighs. “It’s just a few subtle comments and looks I’ve been getting, but like I said… It takes a lot to scare me off.”

Finn laughs. “Well, I’m sorry about that. I wish that there were something that I could do. I’m assuming that you met some of the other Ladies.”

“Yes. I think that I met them all.”

“And?”

“And… I think you’ve got a tough decision to make, Your Highness.” She teases.

“You think?”

Clarke nods, her eyes still wanting to scan over the antique decor of the room. She thinks that she could stay in this castle for the rest of her life and not discover everything that it has to offer. It really is beautiful. Every detail. “Lady Zoe seemed quiet, but sweet. Lady Harper is a little….” She hesitates, not really knowing what word she should use.

“Much?”

“Exactly.” They both laugh. “Your parent’s seem to love her though.” Finn nods but doesn’t say anything, waiting for the blonde to continue her appraisal of the other Ladies. “Lady Niylah is interesting. I hear that she’s knew to the country, but the members of the Court that I met seemed to have high praise for her.”

“Yes.” The Prince agrees. “She would bring a great amount of trade influence to our economy.”

“This has to be hard for you.” She finally says, wanting to attempt to get Finn’s thoughts and feelings of the whole process. He looks confused and she explains herself. “I just mean that you act like you can’t really make this decision with your heart. Like you have to see what each person brings to the table.”

Finn nods. “Yes. It’s a little disheartening, but this is my country. My duty is to Arkadia and her people. I will choose whomever I think will be the best person to lead this country with me, and if I just so happen to fall in love with that person, then that’s amazing.”

“I don’t think that I would be able to live like that. Be able to make that sort of sacrifice.”

“If it were your people, Clarke, I certainly believe that you would do anything for them.” He smiles sadly, and the claps his hands together wanting to change the subject. “And what about Lady Alexandria?” Clarke looks a little caught off guard at the question and then calms when she remembers that she hadn’t assessed Lexa for him. She smiles.

“She is definitely something else. I can see how most people would find her intimidating. It’s like she’s a robot.”

Finn laughs at that. Really laughs and Clarke chuckles along with him. “You said ‘most people’. So you aren’t intimidated by her?”

Clarke shakes her head. “No. Not really.” That’s only half a lie. She’s definitely intimidated, but not for the reasons that one might think. “She was very nice. Our conversation seemed to flow easily.”

“Yes.” Finn hums in agreement. “She’s a great person to talk to. Especially when you’ve known her your whole life.”

“So, she’s like your best friend?”

“Pretty much. We’ve had some good times together. Got into a lot of trouble.” He smiles.

“I can only imagine. I heard that she is going to be the next General for your armies soon. And she’s allowed to do that and be Queen? If she’s chosen, I mean…”

“She will be the General more than likely.” He nods with a grin. “She’s sort of a badass.” Clarke chuckles and acts shocked at hearing the Prince curse. “As far as being both the Queen and the General… it’s never been done before, but if anyone can convince my parent’s and the other Nobles, it’s Lexa. I’m sure that she will achieve her goal. If anyone were to ever love this country more than me, it would be her.”

“You speak very highly of her.”

“You met her, right?” Finn laughs. “Would you not speak so highly of Miss Reyes?”

“Not that highly.” Clarke jokes and the two of them laugh. The chat for another few minutes before Finn has to excuse himself. He was just glad that he could make a little time to spend with Clarke privately. He kisses the back of her hand and opens the door for her where they find Bellamy waiting patiently.

“Goodnight, Clarke.” He smiles and pats Bellamy on the shoulder before leaving, and then his bodyguard escorts Clarke back to her room for the night.

 

//

 

After Clarke showers and gets dressed for sleep, she sinks down into her soft and luxurious bed. She sighs and rubs her hand down her face as she thinks back to all of the people she had met earlier that evening. There is definitely a vast array of people in Arkadia that she is going to have to learn to communicate better with. One person does stand out, oh so obviously, in her mind. Lexa Woods. When Octavia had explained Lexa to her a couple of days before while out shopping, Clarke immediately knew that Lexa would be a force to be reckoned with. Oh how right she was. Clarke had been completely gobsmacked earlier when she saw the tall brunette. She’s probably one of the most beautiful people that Clarke has ever met. No. She’s definitely the most beautiful person that she’s ever met. No contest. 

The way that Lexa had smiled at her and the way that their conversation seemed to flow easily and without any hesitation was something different for Clarke to witness. If she had ever communicated with someone so easily, it had been because she had known them for ages. This isn’t the case here. Lexa is just an easy person to talk to, and the feelings that Clarke gets in her stomach when the brunette smiles at her is absolutely terrifying. She wasn’t expecting this at all.

As she rolls over to her side to check her cellphone on the nightstand, she notices that she has a text message from Wells. He had entered his and Octavia’s phone numbers into her phone earlier that evening just in case she had any questions that they might could answer.

WELLS (12:07AM) - Brunch at 10AM tomorrow with the other suitors and the Queen in the gardens.

CLARKE (12:13AM) - Oh. So no big deal, right?

WELLS (12:14AM) - You did great tonight, Clarke. You’ll do great tomorrow. After brunch, you and Raven can ride with me into town if you wish. I have a few errands to run and I know that you won’t want to be stuck in the castle all day.

CLARKE (12:16AM) - Sounds like a plan. What should I wear? To brunch, I mean.

WELLS (12:17AM) - A sundress should suffice.

CLARKE (12:17AM) - Okay. Night, Wells.

WELLS (12:19AM) - Goodnight. Octavia will be by to escort you to the gardens around 9:30.

Clarke lays her phone back down onto small side table by the bed and returns to lying on her back. She finds herself getting lost in her thoughts while staring at the ceiling. She still can’t believe that this is her life. That this is all really happening. Brunches with a Queen? Balls with beautiful gowns and Princes? A very hot soon to be General of the Royal Army? Yep. This is her life now.

 

//

 

“Alright.” Octavia says as she and Clarke make their way down to the gardens. Clarke had messaged Raven earlier that morning to explain to her that she was going to eat with the Queen and would be back later. Raven was glad to have the opportunity for the extra sleep, so she didn’t complain. “Do you need anything?”

“I don’t think so.” Clarke smiles softly, running her fingers through her soft blonde curls. She decided on leaving her hair fully down for this small event and the sundress that she picked out made her feel very bright and cheerful. The dress is a bright white with different colored birds scattered across as the design. Octavia helped her select a pair of turquoise-colored pumps to match and handed Clarke a bright-orange clutch to hold. There’s a bit of a breeze this morning, so Clarke opted to wear a white blazer to top it all off. “Unless you have a shot of vodka in your back pocket.” The blonde jokes.

Octavia sighs and then grins. “Unfortunately, no. So, you think that you’re good to go? I will be right inside these doors if you need anything.” She motions out the glass doors and points out into the bright beautiful morning. “Just follow the path. The gardens are just around the corner. The other suitors are probably there already and waiting for the Queen.”

“Thank you, Octavia.” Clarke responds and opens the doors to make her way there. Octavia had been right. The walk only took thirty seconds or so to get there. The garden is stunning, to say the least. Surrounded by old brick walls, looking like they were from a building that no longer stands, the garden is massive. Trees, flowers, and other various plants seem to swallow up the area and Clarke immediately wants to run to her room and grabs her paints and get to work.

When Clarke makes it to the apex of the gardens, she finds a very lovely tea setup. Four round, white tables are standing with gorgeous pink flowers used as the centerpieces. She sees a buffet draped in an elegant white tablecloth, not far from the tables, filled with yummy looking foods. There is a guard at each of the four entrances to the garden, and Clarke suddenly remembers where she is. She smiles when see notices Zoe sitting alone at a table and makes her way over to sit beside her. “Good morning, Lady Zoe.” Clarke smiles sweetly.

The other girl looks surprised that Clarke even spoke to her, but eventually smiles softly. “Good morning, Lady Clarke. Did you enjoy your first ball last night?”

Clarke nods and accepts the cup of coffee that a random waiter had just brought by to her. “I did, actually. It was less intimidating than I had imagined it would be.”

“Just wait until they start letting the press into the events this weekend.”

Clarke groans before she can even think. “I had completely forgotten about having to deal with any press.” She sighs. “Well it was nice knowing you, Zoe. I’m sure to stick my foot in my mouth and get voted off of the island.” She jokes and sees a hint of a smile form on the quieter girl’s face.

“I’m sure that you’ll do just fine.” Zoe replies. “My grandmother always told me to stay true to myself and I would be fine.”

“Your grandmother sounds like she was a very smart woman.” Clarke smiles softly, picking up the look of sorrow that crossed over her neighbor’s features as she spoke of her grandmother.

“She was.” The two of them sit in a comfortable silence for a couple of more minutes. Clarke’s eyes scan the area around them, taking it all in. She sees Harper and Niylah having, what looks to be, an intense conversation. She definitely doesn’t find herself looking for a stunning, brunette goddess. After a moment, however, she hears footsteps approaching them and turns to see who it is. It’s Lexa.

“Good morning, Lady Zoe.” Lexa smiles widely and nods towards Zoe before looking at Clarke with an equally as wide smile. “Good morning, Lady Clarke.”

“Good morning.” Both women say at the same time.

“Is this seat taken?” Lexa motions to a chair beside Clarke and the blonde shakes her head in response. Lexa pulls the chair out from under the table and begins to sit. Clarke notices what she’s wearing and her mouth goes completely dry. Lexa was sporting a pair of high-waisted white slacks with a silky rose-gold tank tucked into them. The tank is cut so lowly that Clarke can’t believe that the girl showed up wearing it. Clarke’s not complaining by any means. She is more than happy to take in the view of Lexa Woods’ impeccable collar and chest bones. She can see where the beginnings of the brunette’s abs start to form. That’s how low the cut in the shirt is. Again. Not complaining. Lexa’s long, tanned arms flex a small bit while she pulls out the chair and she smiles at Clarke again once she’s seated.

Lexa runs a hand through her high ponytail before folding her hands in her lap. “It’s such a beautiful day, isn’t it?” Her optimism and sunny outlook has Clarke smiling widely. She really hopes that neither Lexa nor Zoe can tell what kind of effect the soon-to-be General has on her.

“It is.” Clarke answers finally and looks over to find that Zoe is in a conversation with Niylah and Harper now. She looks back to Lexa is watching her intently. “Do I have something on my face?” Clarke jokes.

“Actually…”

Clarke’s hands fly up to her face and her eyes go wide. “Oh god. What is it? Where?” She moves to open her clutch on the table to grab her pocket mirror, but is stopped by one of the best sounds in the world. Lexa’s laugh.

“I’m sorry, Lady Clarke.” Lexa settles her laughter, and the smile that keeps appearing on her face does weird things to Clarke’s insides. “I couldn’t resist. Your face is fine.”

Clarke huffs playfully and closes her clutch. She looks to Lexa with a raised brow. “So, you think my face is fine?” The look on Lexa’s face tells Clarke that she definitely caught the woman off guard and she mentally fist pumps. 

“That’s not what I - I mean, yes. There’s nothing - I see nothing not to like.” Lexa stumbles over her words and feels like a complete fool. She never gets flustered. What is this blonde woman doing to her? She just hopes it’s not obvious how attracted she is to her.

“Relax, Lady Alexandria.” Clarke chuckles. “I’m just screwing with you.”

“I guess I deserved that.” Lexa smiles and then leans back in her chair a little more to relax as they wait for the Queen. “You can call me ‘Lexa’.”

Clarke grins. “And you can call me ‘Clarke’.”

“Okay then, Clarke.” Lexa says softly, rubbing at whatever wrinkles may come up on her pants’ leg as she crosses them. “Last night you mentioned that you worked at a bar. Is there anything else that you do?”

The blonde mirrors Lexa by crossing her own legs, and she thinks that she might have just saw Lexa’s eyes flicker down to the pale skin of her legs briefly. “Welll, it’s not anything cool like being some sort of big shot leader of a military group or anything.” She teases, and Lexa rolls her eyes. “I’m an artist, actually.” Lexa’s eyes shoot up like that’s the last thing that she was expecting Clarke to say. “I paint mostly, but occasionally I will grab some charcoal and my sketchpad just to sketch.”

“That’s very intriguing. I’d love to see some of your work sometime.” Lexa smiles and Clarke looks down to her hands quickly with a small blush appearing on her face. Most people never ask to see her work. She wasn’t expecting someone like Lexa to care. Lexa must sense Clarke’s hesitation. “That is, if that’s okay with you? I wouldn’t want to impose.”

“No.” Clarke smiles, meeting Lexa’s eyes and her heart starts to pound when she notices just how green they are. Gorgeous. “I’d like that. Most people don’t ask to see my work. It just sort of threw me for a loop.” She chuckles. “I don’t have any pieces with me, but I do have some on my laptop in my room.”

Lexa seems to think about something for a moment before replying. “Well if you would like, we could hang out this weekend after the press dinner on Saturday. Sunday is the only day that I have cleared for a while, so it won’t harm me to stay up too late.” She grins.

“That sounds good to me.” Clarke smiles.

“Maybe Octavia and your friend Raven can join us?” Lexa adds, and Clarke doesn’t know why but she feels a little let down by having someone else there. She really needs to get her shit together. “I know where the cook stores all of the junk food.” She winks, and Clarke is pretty sure that her heart just stopped.

“Uh - yeah. Um. Yes.” She smiles nervously and clears her throat. “That sounds fun. Can’t wait.” Lexa leans back again. Clearly she had gotten a little too excited with the prospect of spending an evening with Clarke and started to lean forward. “So, what do you do with your free time, Lexa?” Clarke asks softly, testing out the girl’s name on her tongue. She has to admit that she likes it, and Lexa would never admit that she likes it even more. 

Lexa clears her throat before answering. “Unfortunately, I don’t get all that much free time.” She shrugs when Clarke looks at her funny. “Most of my time is spent training the troops back at the base in the northern part of the country. It’s our headquarters. Between training and the events that this whole ordeal is supposed to bring, I won’t have any free time for a while.”

“You train the soldiers?”

“Yes.” Lexa nods. “Most of them. My father and I and my cousin Lincoln. It’s really a group effort.” She smiles. Always so modest.

Clarke straightens her back and leans forward over the table a little, and luckily for Lexa, Clarke doesn’t notices green eyes gliding down to get a glimpse of the little bit of cleavage that shows in Clarke’s sundress. “What do you train them in?”

Lexa takes a large gulp of air, hoping that the heat that she’s feeling on the inside is not showing on the outside. “We have marksman training, which is something that every soldier does.” Clarke nods, letting Lexa know that she’s listening intently. “Lincoln and my father mostly take charge of the marksman training. I mostly take point on the hand-to-hand combat training.”

“Wow.” Clarke says softly. “What type of hand-to-hand stuff do you teach?”

“Multiple different arts.” Lexa replies with a shrug, like it’s not big deal. “My specialty is Krav Maga. An old Israeli friend trained me when I was younger. I’ve almost mastered it. Of course, I will never be as good as he was.” The brunette chuckles.

Clarke stares at the girl in awe. She’s seen people perform martial arts before, but she’s fairly certain that she would burst into flames if she saw Lexa fighting. In shorts. And a sports bra. She has to shake her head to try and rid her distracting thoughts of the woman in front of her. “That sounds really -” Clarke wants to say ‘hot’, but she refrains. “Impressive.”

“Maybe I can show you one day.” Lexa smiles sincerely, catching Clarke off guard. “I mean, it’s the least that I can do if you plan on showing me your artwork. We will trade the secrets of our crafts.” She jokes and Clarke laughs at that.

“Yes.” Clarke chuckles. “I’m sure that I would most definitely not look like a complete and utter fool trying to learn an ancient, deadly martial art.” 

Their laughter settles for a quick second before the sweetest, softest smile forms on the green-eyed woman’s face. “You could never look like a fool, Clarke.” Clarke’s heart is beating an embarrassing tattoo against the inside of her chest, and she really hopes that this super woman doesn’t have super hearing or else she’s screwed.

Clarke doesn’t know what to say. She’s sure that her face is blushing pink at the moment, but luckily she doesn’t have to say anything because the guards are announcing the arrival of the Queen. Lexa smiles once more at Clarke before the two of them stand and await to greet the monarch.

Did Clarke mention that she’s royally screwed?

 

//

 

The Queen doesn’t stay for tea long. Clarke assumes that the woman has more important duties to perform throughout her day, and the blonde is a-okay with that. Queen Katherine had once again given her the cold shoulder during tea, and Clarke was bound and determined to change the woman’s mind before it’s all said and done.

After the gardens have mostly cleared of all Noble blood, Clarke finds herself meandering through the gargantuan maze inside the gardens. She studies all of the variations of flowers and shrubs that she finds; her hands itching to pick up her sketch pad. She only wishes that she would have had room to bring it with her out to the gardens.

Running her finger along the tall greenery beside her, her mind lost in her thoughts, Clarke makes to turn a sharp corner in front of her. When she does, she immediately runs straight into something. Or rather someone. Clarke probably would have fallen over if strong arms wouldn’t have reached out to stop her. “Clarke?” Lexa huffs, trying to steady her breathing from being ran into a moment earlier. Blue eyes shoot up to green ones, and Clarke’s heart starts to pound again. Why does this brunette have such an effect on her? Before Clarke can respond, someone is pulling her backwards before stepping between she and Lexa. It’s a woman about Lexa’s height, and her face is sculpted almost as well as Lexa’s. Sharp jawline. Really sharp cheekbones. The glare on her face sends a shiver down Clarke’s spine, and not the good kind. 

“Anya.” Lexa says sharply from behind the woman, stepping up beside her and looking apologetically at Clarke. “It’s fine. We just ran into each other. Give us a moment, please.” The other woman nods, her eyes still trained on the blonde in front of her, before stalking away. Clarke can still see Anya, but it’s obvious that she’s keeping her distance. Lexa walks up and places her hands softly on Clarke’s shoulders, and the blonde feels herself relax a fraction more. “Clarke, I am so sorry. She’s just being protective.”

Clarke watches Lexa’s vividly green eyes for a moment. They’re really expressive, if one would only take the time to watch. Clarke is positive that she would rather do nothing else. She could definitely watch Lexa’s eyes all day. That’s when she breaks her focus and shakes her head with a soft smile. “It’s okay, Lexa.” She grins a little wider. “So, the big bad Alexandria Woods has a bodyguard?” Clarke lets out a distant whistle and Lexa lets her hands slide off of the blonde’s shoulders before rolling her eyes and letting out a chuckle. 

“I do.” She grins. “I told my father for years that I needed nothing of the sort, but he insisted. I told him that if I had to have one, then I wanted it to be someone that I was comfortable with.” Lexa nods her head over in the direction of Anya. “That’s Anya. One of my best friends, and personal bodyguard.”

“You just have one?” Clarke asks, because she’s noticed that the other Noble Ladies have upwards to four guards each. Finn has a whole team stationed with him, usually. 

Lexa nods. “Remember, Clarke… I’m ‘the big bad Alexandria Woods’.” Clarke laughs and smacks Lexa’s shoulder before realizing what she had just done. She glances to Anya and sees the other woman eyeing her. Lexa must sense Clarke become a little wary and tense. She chuckles. “Clarke, it’s okay.” She watches as Clarke’s cerulean eyes make their way back to her own, and Lexa can admit to herself that she’s never had anyone give her this feeling in her chest from just one look. The brunette steels her face before smirking at Clarke. “You can get a lot more rough than that.”

Clarke looks to her feet at that moment because she turns a bright shade of red. She never gets flustered, so this is all new territory for her. And what the hell does that even mean? Is Lexa insinuating something? No. Surely not. Clarke is broken out of her thoughts by light laughter and she looks up to see Lexa’s face alight with amusement. Clarke rolls her eyes and smacks the woman’s arm again. A little ‘more rough’ this time. “Ass.” Clarke huffs, but she can’t hide the smile on her face before she turns away and begins walking. She immediately hears footsteps behind her, but doesn’t turn around.

“An ass? Really?” Lexa teases. “Wow. I can’t believe you just called me that.”

“I’m sure that you’re used to it.” Clarke fires back, and Lexa laughs out loud. Clarke could definitely get used to Lexa’s laugh. It makes what’s inside her chest pound even harder. The pair doesn’t speak for nearly a minute. Clarke continues walking, and she hears Lexa only a step or two behind her. A smile never leaves either one of their faces, and Clarke decides to finally break the silence between them. “Are you just going to follow me around the gardens all day?”

Lexa shrugs her shoulders with her arms behind her back in her usual pose. She doesn’t say anything for what feels like an eternity to Clarke, so the blonde makes an abrupt stop and turns around to the green-eyed beauty. Lexa almost runs into her, but she catches herself. Clarke’s eyes search over Lexa’s face, and the blonde can’t help but grin. “I have an appointment in a couple of hours.” Lexa finally says, standing up straighter and watching Clarke’s every move. “But there’s just so much beauty here. I really don’t want to leave.” 

Clarke is a little taken aback by the admission, but surely the woman is talking about the gardens, right? There’s too much beauty in the gardens… right. But Clarke can’t help but wonder if that’s really what Lexa is talking about. The way that the brunette is watching her, makes her feel all kinds of different things. They’re too lost inside their own little world when they are quickly broken apart. “Clarke! Thank God!” A familiar voice calls from behind them. Clarke and Lexa both turn to see a small but mighty Octavia headed their way. “I was almost ready to send out the whole team looking for you. I thought that you were coming back inside after tea?”

Clarke finally finds her voice to answer, although she can still feel Lexa’s warm presence radiating from beside her. It makes her feel a little uneasy for a moment. Not a bad uneasy… just different. “I’m sorry, Octavia. I decided to take a walk in the gardens afterwards. I completely forgot that you were waiting for me inside.”

“It’s okay. Just try to remember and text me next time, deal?”

“Deal.” Clarke smiles, and she sees Octavia’s eyes flicker over her shoulder to look at Lexa.

“Woods? How did you manage to get out of the meeting with Major General Freeman?” The short woman asks, usually knowing each and every suitor’s schedule for the week. Clarke can somehow feel Lexa tense up behind her, and she turns to look at the taller brunette. Lexa doesn’t look at her because she’s looking at Octavia. 

“I, um - There’s was a change in schedule. The meeting is at one this afternoon.” Lexa wasn’t about to admit that she might have pushed the meeting back a couple of hours so that she might have a little extra time with a certain blonde. And she most certainly wouldn’t admit that she saw Clarke go into the gardens earlier and decided to follow her.

Octavia looks to her friend knowingly and then hums. “Ahh, well lucky you. At least you get to have a little time in your day to get to know more about your competitors.” Octavia smiles, and Lexa rolls her eyes at the word ‘competitors’. She’s not competing for Finn. The whole idea is preposterous to her, and Octavia knows that. Octavia looks to Clarke then with a small smile. “Raven is up in her room waiting for you. Wells, should be here soon to pick the both of you up. He mentioned something about the two of you riding with him to town.”

“Oh -right.” Clarke smiles. “I completely forgot. Thanks, Octavia.” She turns to Lexa and feels her heart rate pick up at the way that the taller woman watches her closely. She’s never been around anyone with such an intimidating stare. She’d be lying if she said that she didn’t like it, though. “It was good to see you again, Lexa.” Clarke smiles warmly.

Lexa smiles back, completely forgetting that Octavia is there watching the interaction. “The pleasure was all mine, Clarke.” Before Clarke can walk away, Lexa stops her once more. “Clarke.” She looks to Octavia. “Octavia. You both should make a trip up to the training base this week. I’ll be there all week before heading back here this weekend. It would be great to have dinner with you one night. I can take you on a tour around the base.” It almost seemed that Lexa was rambling, and maybe she is, but for some reason she can’t stand the idea of not seeing Clarke until the weekend. “Bring Raven along, too. And Wells. You can all stay in my chateau there.”

Clarke looks to Octavia for an answer and the shorter woman nods to her. “That sounds great, Lexa.” Clarke smiles. “I’d love to see more of Arkadia, and this will be the perfect opportunity for you to show me some of your moves.” The blonde winks at Lexa, who lets out a chuckle as she nods.

“Sounds like a plan, Miss Griffin.” Lexa replies before Clarke walks away, back towards the castle.

“Okay. What the hell is going on with the two of you?” Octavia asks almost immediately. Lexa looks at her shorter friend in faux confusion, but Octavia knows her better than anyone. “Cut the crap, Lex. You like her.”

“What?”

“Don’t ‘what’ me. Clarke…. you like her.”

Lexa rolls her eyes. “Clarke is a likeable person, Octavia. She’s not like the stuck up Nobles around here.”

“You know that that’s not what I mean, Lexa.”

Lexa sighs before running a hand through her ponytail nervously. She should have known that Octavia would catch on with her infatuation with the blonde. “It doesn’t matter that I like her, Octavia. You know that there’s nothing I can do about it.”

“Umm - yes there is.” Octavia huffs and falls in line beside Lexa as she begins to walk away. “You can say, ‘Hey Clarke. I really like you and think that you should give me a chance.’”

Lexa lets out a soft sarcastic chuckle. “Are you serious, O? You know that I can’t do that.”

“You can do that. Forget what these people will think about you. You’re one of the best and most amazing people that I know, Lexa and you deserve to live how you want to live. To love who you want to love.”

“Thanks, O. But you know that I can’t.” Lexa smiles sadly. “Besides, even if I could, who’s to say that Clarke is even into women?”

“I think that you should just talk to her, Lexa.” Octavia smiles and pats Lexa on the shoulder before walking off. “It will be good for you and she’s a very understanding person from what I’ve seen.” Octavia walks off, leaving Lexa there staring at the cobblestone walkway in front of her. All of a sudden Lexa is nervous to be around Clarke again, but she thinks that it’s a good nervous.

 

//

 

 

“So, Wells…” Clarke starts in, breaking the silence that has settled between the man driving, Raven and herself. The three of them are headed into the nearest town to run a couple of errands, and Clarke is just thrilled to be out of the castle for a while. “Lexa invited the three of us and Octavia to come visit her this week at some base she’s training at up north.”

Wells hums as he cuts on his blinker, looking in the rear view mirror to see Raven texting on her phone. “That would be Polis.” He says softly, letting Clarke know the name of the base that Lexa is talking about. “She spends most of her time there when she’s not here. You guys should go visit. It’s a very nice place. You’ll enjoy it.”

“And what about you?” Clarke asks, nudging the man’s arm from where it’s propped up on the middle console of his sports car.

“My father and I have meeting all week with different representatives from around Arkadia. The King and the Prince will be present for the majority of them, so I must be there.”

“Well that sucks.” Clarke huffs, crossing her arms in front of her and leaning back into the leather seat. 

Wells chuckles. “You girls will have fun. I actually can’t believe that Lexa invited people up there.”

“Why do you say that?”

He shrugs in answer. “I don’t know. She’s just usually all business while she’s there. Never makes time for anything leisurely.”

It’s Clarke’s turn to hum and she thinks back to the two or three times that she’s been around the soon-to-be General. “Really? She seems pretty laid back to me.”

Wells gives Clarke a side glance with a smirk in place on his face. “Are we talking about the same Lexa?”

“Yes.” Clarke groans. “She’s very likeable.”

“I never said that she wasn’t likeable.” He grins. “The whole country adores her.”

“Umm, yeah.” Raven chimes in from the back, clearly through messing with her cellphone and now interested in the conversation coming from the two people in the front. “Have you seen her? Of course everyone adores her! She’s a fucking goddess!” Wells and Clarke both laugh at the blonde’s best friend’s antics. “Clarke, you know she is.” Her best friend only hums and of course Raven can’t just leave the conversation alone. That would be too easy. “Griffin, you know that you’d bang her. I saw the way that you practically drooled all over her when she made her grand entrance at that ball the other night.”

Wells eyes widen a bit and he laughs at the blush that seems to take over Clarke’s features, and the blonde is glad that they’ve finally arrived at their first destination so that she can exit the vehicle and run away from her best friend. “I did not.” Clarke argues, but she knows that she’s already lost the battle because her best friend knows her better than anyone and she sort of hates that right now.

“Whatever.” Raven fires back. “I’ll just have Octavia pull surveillance from that night to prove to you.”

“That’s a little excessive.” Clarke groans, opening the door and swinging her legs out gracefully so that her dress doesn’t come flying up. 

“I don’t know, Clarke.” Wells chimes in. “You did look rather taken aback when Lexa got to the event that night.” The blonde spins around to look at him over the top of the vehicle and before he can say anything, Wells and Raven both burst out into laughter and Raven snags a high-five from the man.

“I hate the both of you.” The blue-eyed girl groans, securing her clutch and walking off without them. She has no clue as to where she’s going, but she can’t just stop. She’s trying to make a point by storming off. It wouldn’t be effective if she just stopped now. Clarke finds herself in front of a small coffee shop and grins at how much it reminds her of her favorite place back in New York. She smiles at the older woman behind the counter and orders a black coffee. After paying, she makes her way back to the corner of the room and sits down, hugging the warm coffee up around her mouth. As she’s taking a sip, she hears the door open and looks up to see Raven walking in with a smart-ass grin on her face. Clarke only rolls her eyes and continues drinking her coffee until her best friend plops down in the seat across from her.

“Fancy seeing you here.” Raven teases, reaching across and grabbing Clarke’s cup and taking a sip. “Eww -” She sputters. “No creamer?”

“It’s my coffee, you ass.”

“Touche.” The pair of friends sit in silence for a few moments, both of them looking around. They take in their surroundings and people watch until Clarke speaks.

“Did I really make it that obvious that I was attracted to Lexa?”

Raven chuckles. “Only to me, Griff. Like I said, you sort of had a reason to look at her that way. She’s hot as hell.”

“God.” Clarke groans. “She is, but it’s not just that. Her personality makes her that much hotter, and I’ve only spent a couple of hours total with her.”

“Too bad she’s not the one you’re trying to get with, huh?” Raven jokes and the two friends laugh, but Clarke can only agree a thousand percent with Raven inside her head. Clarke feels awful for thinking that, but she hasn’t felt a connection like that with anyone ever. Finn is sweet and very polite, but unless something sparks between she and him in the next few days, Clarke is utterly and completely screwed. 

“So, where’s Wells?” Clarke asks, changing the subject. She doesn’t want her thoughts to linger on the taller brunette for much longer. She feels like such a creep because she’s spending so much time thinking about the cocky military girl.

“Said he had to go to the bank and then meet with some guy about something.” Raven shrugs and Clarke laughs at her friend. “He said he’d meet us back at the car in an hour.” The pair sit and chat for several minutes; Raven asking Clarke about FInn and the other women who are here to compete for him. Clarke, then, telling her about inviting Octavia and Lexa into her room sometime this coming weekend for a slumber party and the brunette getting way too excited about the hot girl coming to sleep with them. It’s then when the door to the coffee shop opens again. Clarke doesn’t look up, but Raven does and that’s when the blonde hears her friend gasp. “Clarke. Holy shit. It’s her.”

At that, blue eyes shoot up to see none other than Lexa Woods walking through the door. Wearing the same thing that she had been a couple of hours earlier at tea with the Queen, holding her cellphone up to her ear and talking animatedly about something serious. Lexa hasn’t noticed the pair yet, as she waits in line to place her order and Raven looks back to Clarke with a shit-eating grin on her face. “You better not even think of leaving me alone with her again, Raven Reyes.” Clarke says through gritted teeth. 

“And why not? She’s hot. You’re hot. You’re both totally into each other. What could it hurt?”

“First of all, she’s not into me.” Clarke argues. “Secondly, I just - I can’t -”

“Exactly.” Raven smirks. “Can’t argue with me, Griff.” She glances over her shoulder again at Lexa who is ordering her coffee, now off of her phone. Raven looks back at Clarke and wiggles her eyebrows before jumping up and walking briskly towards the door. “See you later, Clarke!” The Latina practically yells, causing Clarke to go red in the face. “Meet you at the car in half an hour!”

At Clarke’s name, Lexa spins around looking everywhere around the small shop until her eyes land on Clarke’s and Lexa smiles widely. She thanks the barista when she hands her a cup and then makes her way over to the back corner where the blonde is sitting. “Man.” Lexa grins, propping a hand on the back of the chair that Raven had been sitting in. “We’ve got to stop running into each other like this, Miss Griffin.”

Clarke doesn’t know whether to kill Raven or kiss her. The blonde smiles just as widely as the woman across from her. “And why do we have to stop?” She mentally fist pumps, knowing that that line was pretty smooth for her, and she knows that it works when Lexa’s grin widens.

“Oh, we don’t.” Lexa says softly, taking a sip of her coffee and then patting the chair in front of her. “Do you mind if I sit?”

“Not at all.” Clarke gestures at the chair. When the taller woman sits and adjusts her purse on the back of the chair, she looks at Clarke again and she just can’t seem to wipe the smile from her face. “I thought that you had a meeting with a Major?” Clarke teases, remembering that Lexa had somewhere to be earlier after tea.

Lexa clicks her tongue and crosses her long legs off to the side of the chair. Clarke really really tries not to let her look linger on Lexa’s figure, but the feat is too great a task. Luckily, Lexa doesn’t seem to notice. “Just left actually.” Lexa gestures to her coffee. “Needed a pick-me-up before I fly back to Polis. What brings you into town?”

“Raven and I rode with Wells out here. He had a few errands to run and I had to get away from the two of them for a while so I came in here.” Clarke jokes, but she’s actually deadly serious and Lexa raises an eyebrow at her in question. “Oh.” Clarke’s face goes red remembering why she wanted to get away from her two teasing friends. “They just like to pick at me and get on my nerves about things sometimes. I had to get out of there.” Clarke laughs.

“Want me to kick their asses for you?” Lexa jokes and bites her bottom lip, and the brunette totally notices when Clarke’s cerulean eyes flash down for a split second before meeting her green eyes again. 

“Would you?”

“Anything for you.” Lexa smiles and takes another sip of her drink.

“My hero.” Clarke replies with a grin. “So, I think that Raven, Octavia and I are definitely going to come check out Polis in a couple of days.”

“Really?” Lexa smiles, uncrossing her legs and leaning closer, over the table. “That’s great.” In Lexa’s head, she’s just happy that she gets to see Clarke again so soon and she immediately feels like a needy child. It’s ridiculous. She barely knows anything about the blonde, yet she finds herself so drawn to her. She really is screwed. 

“Yeah, so you better have the best damn tour planned for us.” Clarke jokes.

“I’ll be there, won’t I?” Lexa winks and Clarke shakes her head, not caring that a hint of a smile breaks out across her lips.

“This is true.”

“Just tell Octavia to let me know what time you want to leave on Wednesday, and I’ll send my jet to pick you guys up. No need in driving three hours to Polis when you can fly for thirty minutes.” Lexa responds. Clarke nods and the two fall into a comfortable silence, sipping on their coffees and exchanging glances over the rims of their cups ever so often. “I’m glad that I met you.” Lexa says softly, and the look on her face tells Clarke that she hadn’t really meant to say that aloud. “It’s just - when I heard there was another woman joining this pool, and that she was from America, I was honestly dreading it.” She shrugs her shoulders softly, setting her cup down on the table while Clarke hangs on her every word. “But after meeting you, I feel really bad about even thinking that.” Lexa chuckles. “I - I um, actually look forward to these events now, knowing that I’ve got someone like you there to talk to.”

Clarke’s sure that her heart is about to pop out of her chest and fling itself over to the green-eyed brunette across from her. Lexa seems so honest and sincere and Clarke can’t help but grin like an idiot. “I think that it’s safe to say that I look forward to these events because of you too.” Clarke feels the tips of her ears light up pink before she adds. “And Finn of course.”

Lexa’s jaw tenses and she seems to grind her teeth for a moment before smiling softly, again. “Of course.” They settle into silence again and Clarke starts to wonder if she said anything wrong. She watches cautiously as Lexa focuses on her cup, twiddling her thumbs against the table until she glances up to see Clarke watching her. Clarke feels the need to apologize for being such a creeper.

“I’m sorry.” Clarke smiles softly. “It’s just - when Octavia was informing me of all of the other women that were trying for Finn and she described you, I just never expected you to be so nice and easy to talk to.”

Lexa smiles back at her, and Clarke is beginning to get very used to that smile. “Thanks?” The brunette chuckles and then so does Clarke. “I’m kidding. Thank you, really. I think that people have always expected me to be some sort of uptight uppity person because of who my father is and our bloodline, but I’ve just never felt that way. Just because I’m of Noble blood, doesn’t mean that I’m any better than anyone else in this world. I try to treat people the way that I would want to be treated.”

Clarke really wants to tell Lexa how incredible she thinks that she is, but she also knows that it would be very uncalled for, so she refrains. The blonde, without thinking too much about it, reaches over and lays her hand on top of one of Lexa’s on the table and squeezes. “I think that more people should be like you, Lexa Woods. The world would be a lot better place.” Clarke smiles and then immediately removes her hand as much as she would love to leave it there and relish in the warm, smooth skin that Lexa has. Lexa’s eyes, although wide, aren’t comically wide. The feeling of Clarke touching her hand was so minuscule, but it shot a shiver down her spine that she hopes doesn’t show.

“Thank you, Clarke.” She smiles sweetly. “That really means a lot to me, but I honestly wouldn’t mind if there were more of you in the world.” She teases and then adds on a wink for good measure. Clarke laughs and shakes her head, and for a moment, Clarke doesn’t feel so royally screwed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Follow me on Twitter and Instagram @asuzh90

**Author's Note:**

> So.... what did you think? Let me know in the comments below and follow me on Twitter and Instagram @asuzh90 :)


End file.
